We're excited to welcome a very different kind of Nashville rebel, a singer of absolutely uncompromising artistic integrity. In an era of relentlessly commercialized mediocrity force fed over the airwaves, Mandy Barnett is a supremely talented vocalist of another time and place.
Premiering on the stage of the Grand Old Opry at the tender age of 12, Mandy graced the spotlight again at the Opry as the star of the musical hit "Always... Patsy Cline," enjoying two years of sold out performances and standing ovations. (That's her on the Decca Records cast recording.) Since then she's become known in the music industry, and to her audiences, as an incomparable and entirely distinctive performer. There simply is no one like her on the scene today.... but don't just take our word for it. Take it from our namesake... a man who knew a good singer when he heard one...
MANDY BARNETT IS THE GREATEST FEMALE SINGER I'VE EVER HEARD IN MY LIFE. – DON GIBSON
Substantial praise considering that Mr. Gibson not only wrote Patsy Cline's "Sweet Dreams" but worked very closely with the legendary star.
This concert initiates an annual event featuring performers most closely related to Don Gibson's career, and we agree with Mr. Gibson's wife Bobbi that Mandy is the perfect artist to get the ball rolling.
It felt like 1963 at the Troubadour on Wednesday night... It was apparent that Barnett's appreciation for Cline is heartfelt and profound, and its effect was sometimes less a performance than a seance.
– Hollywood Reporter
A soft spoken performer who belts 'em out with all the guts and grit of the founding mothers of traditional country music... Lush and breathtaking...
– All Music Guide
And ROLLING STONE said...
Tennessee native Mandy Barnett separates herself emphatically from the contemporary country charts by dipping back in time and forward in maturity. Barnett's voice is startlingly like Cline's - caramel smooth and yodel free, and it sparkles like a simple gem. It's a powerful voice of stunning intensity and precision that seems to channel both Cline and Loretta Lynn. This beauty is heralding a return to country music's good old days and she's ready to give Nashville a good slap up the head.
And ROLLING STONE said...
