Paulette Carlson
Encyclopedia
Paulette Tenae Carlson is a country singer-songwriter
who rose to fame in the 1980s as the founder and lead vocalist for the country band Highway 101
. With Highway 101, she charted four #1 hit singles, seven Top 10 hits, a gold album and two back-to-back wins for Vocal Group of the Year from both the ACM and the CMA Awards in 1988 and 1989.
She signed a singles contract with RCA Records
and released three singles, "You Gotta Get to My Heart," "I’d Say Yes," and "Can You Fool," (1983 and 1984). Tammy Wynette
also recorded a song Carlson had written, "With a Friend Like You (Who Needs a Lover)," which also appeared on the b-side of "You Gotta Get to My Heart."
in 1987 with session musician
s Jack Daniels, "Cactus" Moser and Curtis Stone. The band signed to Warner Bros. Records
and recorded three albums with Carlson on lead vocals. She left the band in 1990 following its Greatest Hits album, and Nikki Nelson
succeeded her on lead vocals.
.
Christmas Is For You, a traditional Christmas album, was released in 1993 under a small independent label. Carlson got into the spirit and wrote two Christmas songs for the album, "Christmas is for You" and "Mrs. Santa Claus." Both songs were made into music videos.
and Latest & Greatest. "Where’d You Get Your Cheatin’ From" and "It Must be Love" were released as singles (1996 and 1997). After a short brief tour, Carlson decided to split from Highway 101 again and retire to concentrate on her family.
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
who rose to fame in the 1980s as the founder and lead vocalist for the country band Highway 101
Highway 101
Highway 101 is an American country music band founded by Paulette Carlson , Jack Daniels , Curtis Stone and Scott "Cactus" Moser . With Carlson as lead vocalist, the band recorded three albums for Warner Bros. Records Nashville and charted ten consecutive Top Ten hits on the Hot Country Songs...
. With Highway 101, she charted four #1 hit singles, seven Top 10 hits, a gold album and two back-to-back wins for Vocal Group of the Year from both the ACM and the CMA Awards in 1988 and 1989.
Beginnings
Paulette Carlson began singing in bars in her hometown and built a large local following before heading out to Nashville in 1978. There she found work as a songwriter, working for the Oak Ridge Boys’ Silverline Publishing Company, and singing background vocals for Warner Brothers' recording artist Gail Davies in 1981 and 1982.She signed a singles contract with RCA Records
RCA Records
RCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label...
and released three singles, "You Gotta Get to My Heart," "I’d Say Yes," and "Can You Fool," (1983 and 1984). Tammy Wynette
Tammy Wynette
Virginia Wynette Pugh, known professionally as Tammy Wynette , was an American country music singer-songwriter and one of the genre's best-known artists and biggest-selling female vocalists....
also recorded a song Carlson had written, "With a Friend Like You (Who Needs a Lover)," which also appeared on the b-side of "You Gotta Get to My Heart."
Highway 101
Carlson founded Highway 101Highway 101
Highway 101 is an American country music band founded by Paulette Carlson , Jack Daniels , Curtis Stone and Scott "Cactus" Moser . With Carlson as lead vocalist, the band recorded three albums for Warner Bros. Records Nashville and charted ten consecutive Top Ten hits on the Hot Country Songs...
in 1987 with session musician
Session musician
Session musicians are instrumental and vocal performers, musicians, who are available to work with others at live performances or recording sessions. Usually such musicians are not permanent members of a musical ensemble and often do not achieve fame in their own right as soloists or bandleaders...
s Jack Daniels, "Cactus" Moser and Curtis Stone. The band signed to Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...
and recorded three albums with Carlson on lead vocals. She left the band in 1990 following its Greatest Hits album, and Nikki Nelson
Nikki Nelson
Nikki Nelson is an American country music singer. At the age of 7, her family moved to Topaz Lake, Nevada. In 1991, she replaced Paulette Carlson as lead vocalist for the band Highway 101, and their first album together was that year's Bing Bang Boom...
succeeded her on lead vocals.
Solo
She signed with Capitol Nashville and started working on her solo album, Love Goes On (1991). She also took on a more important role, co-writing seven of its ten tracks and co-producing the album with Jimmy Bowen. The first single, "I’ll Start With You" reached #21. Although two more singles were released, "Not With My Heart You Don’t" (#68) and "The Chain Just Broke," both failed to meet her chart status with Highway 101. At the 1992 ACM Awards, Carlson was nominated in the New Female Vocalist category, but lost to Trisha YearwoodTrisha Yearwood
Patricia Lynn Yearwood, professionally known as Trisha Yearwood , is an American country music artist. She is best known for her ballads about vulnerable young women from a female perspective that have been described by some music critics as "strong" and "confident."Trisha Yearwood signed with MCA...
.
Christmas Is For You, a traditional Christmas album, was released in 1993 under a small independent label. Carlson got into the spirit and wrote two Christmas songs for the album, "Christmas is for You" and "Mrs. Santa Claus." Both songs were made into music videos.
Reunited with Highway 101
Marking Highway 101’s Tenth Year Anniversary, Carlson reunited with two original members, Curtis Stone and Jack Daniels. They released two albums, ReunitedReunited (Highway 101 album)
Reunited is the title of an album released in 1996 by Highway 101. The album title references the return of original lead singer Paulette Carlson to the lineup...
and Latest & Greatest. "Where’d You Get Your Cheatin’ From" and "It Must be Love" were released as singles (1996 and 1997). After a short brief tour, Carlson decided to split from Highway 101 again and retire to concentrate on her family.
Present
In 2004, when her brother Gary, a Vietnam Vet, was in the hospital she was inspired to write a song ("Thank You Vets"). After writing the song, she decided to come out of retirement and record a new album of all new material. It's About Time (2005) was released under Pandean Records and she toured briefly to support the album. She continues to perform, including many events associated with military Veterans.Albums
| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| Love Goes On |
|
| Christmas Is for You |
|
| It's About Time |
|
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions |
Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales... |
CAN Country RPM (magazine) RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,... |
|||
| 1983 | "You Gotta Get to My Heart (Before You Lay a Hand on Me)" | 65 | — | Paulette Carlson |
| 1984 | "I'd Say Yes" | 67 | — | |
| "Can You Fool" | 72 | — | ||
| 1991 | "I'll Start with You" | 21 | 50 | Love Goes On |
| 1992 | "Not With My Heart You Don't" | 68 | 84 | |
| "The Chain Just Broke" | — | — | ||
| 2005 | "Thank You Vets" | — | — | It's About Time |
| 2006 | "I Knew a Good Thing When I Had it" | — | — | |
| "That Old Glass Case" | — | — | ||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | ||||
Music videos
| Year | Video | Director |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | "I'll Start with You" | Steven Goldmann Steven Goldmann Steven Goldmann is a Canadian music video and film director. He has directed over 200 music videos. Goldmann also directed the movies Broken Bridges and Trailer Park of Terror, and has additionally directed several television programs.-1990-1999:... |
| 1992 | "The Chain Just Broke" | |
| 2006 | "That Old Glass Case" |