Shelby Lynne Resurrects Dusty Springfield

Posted on Mar 3rd 2008 12:00PM by Steve Baltin
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Shelby Lynne, who grew up in a rock 'n' roll-less house, came to Dusty Springfield late. In fact, she can still remember the night, at 28, when she first heard the legendary soul singer. "I discovered Dusty, [John Lennon's] 'Plastic Ono Band' and Al Green in the same night," Lynne tells Spinner. "I've been f---ed ever since."

Nevertheless, Springfield has led the often Grammy-nominated Lynne to the some of the best reviews of her career. A year-plus after fellow Palm Springs resident Barry Manilow suggested she tackle the songbook of Springfield, Lynne hooked up with iconic producer Phil Ramone (Bob Dylan, Billy Joel) for 'Just a Little Lovin'' -- an album that features nine Springfield songs -- as well as the original track, 'Pretend.'

Lynne admits she didn't warm to the idea immediately. "Well, he mentioned it to me a year before I thought about it," she says. "I wasn't ready to hear it. And when I decided I was going to do it, I didn't know how the hell I was going to do it. I thought, 'This could be a disaster, but I'm gonna try and make it not a disaster.' It was really one of the most fun records I've ever made cause it was just so free. I had never sung the songs before unless I was singing along with Dusty in the car. It's like they were new songs."

Still, despite the album's critical acclaim, Lynne says that fans shouldn't expect such collections to be a regular part of her repertiore. "I don't know if I'll cut covers ever again," she says chuckling. "I'm serious. You see this gray hair?"