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Famous LDS People: Musicians

That's a lesson that SHeDAISY's three sisters – Kassidy, Kelsi and Kristyn Osborn – have learned first-hand. The journey of their career has been marked by peaks and valleys, with steep-grade inclines between them. Now, with "Passenger Seat" racing up the charts faster than any previous SHeDAISY single, and the new CD entitled Sweet Right Here scheduled to be in stores June 8th, the possibilities before them suddenly are wide open again.

SHeDAISY's career got off to a quick start five years ago. The group's first four singles – "Little Good-Byes," "This Woman Needs," "I Will…But" and "Lucky 4 You (Tonight I'm Just Me)" – all went Top 10. The Whole SHeBANG sold nearly 2 million copies, making it one of the most successful debut albums by a country act since the Dixie Chicks. It spent 99 weeks on Billboard magazine's Top Country Albums chart, leading to award nominations from the Grammys, the Country Music Association, the Academy of Country Music, the Blockbuster Music Awards and the American Music Awards.

When a follow-up album, 2002's Knock on the Sky, failed to match its predecessor's success, the sisters had to re-evaluate everything they'd done. "We were hurt, obviously," says Kassidy. "It was hard. But that's always the risk. Every album's a risk."

In the end, a move made out of economic necessity provided the signpost for the group's new direction. Having seen other new artists forced to the point of financial ruin by the demands of a high-production tour, the sisters were determined to steer clear of a similar fate. "We didn't want to over-extend ourselves financially," says Kristyn, the eldest sister. "We wanted to be smart about the way we ran our business." So, when they toured behind Knock on the Sky, they usually went out with only an acoustic band. That instrumentation forced them to simplify the intricate arrangements they'd created for the album and demanded that they stand or fall solely on the quality of the songwriting and their vocal performances.

"We were kind of forced into doing it that way," Kristyn says. "It was a bit humbling, but it gave us a lot of confidence. We learned that it's more important to showcase a song than a record. You can distract people from the song by the sounds you put into it. I don't know that we realized that before."

Those shows re-energized SHeDAISY creatively and gave them a starting point for their forthcoming album. The album's songs have a fresh, acoustic vibe, with plenty of slide guitar but no keyboards. The trio's trademark vocals are simpler, too. There's more three-part harmony, less complex counterpoint. And that's not the only difference. "We stacked our vocals a lot before," says Kassidy, SHeDAISY's lead vocalist. "This time we decided we weren't going to do that. We wanted it to be three girls, not layers of four Kristyns, four Kelsis and four Kassidys. We kept things simpler."

Kristyn says SHeDAISY spent a year and a half recording Knock on the Sky, obsessing over every little detail of the process. "We were meticulous," she says. "We scrutinized everything. The songs were complicated, and we made the production on top of it complicated. Our lives were complicated. Everything was complicated. It wasn't artificial or manufactured. It was natural, but it ended up being too intense. That was creative for us in a way, too. But you can suck the joy right out of the music when you start dissecting every drum pass."

By comparison, the new album was recorded quickly, in just a few sessions, with a minimum of overdubs and effects. The arrangements are more focused, more direct. As a result, they make a bigger impact. "Everyone went in very laid back and easygoing," says Kelsi. "We thought, 'Let's create. Everyone just get in and do their part and see what we come up with.’"

"We cut the basic tracks like we would do demos," Kristyn says. "But we had such top-notch musicians that they were meticulous without even trying to be. We didn't over think those original tracking sessions because we wanted to see what we could come up with. We overlooked some things, we accepted some things, and some things took on a charm that we didn't realize was there. And we didn't sterilize anything."

And the songs themselves are different. "There's an element of joy and freedom and happiness and excitement in the songs that we didn't really have on Knock on the Sky," says Kristyn, who writes all of the group's material and acknowledges a cynical streak. "Last time, we were digging through some deep layers of stuff. It was authentic – that's what we were going through, so that's what we were going to sing about. This time, we are excited again, so the songs reflect that."

The Osborn sisters say they learned plenty of lessons, from their experiences. All those decisions led them to this point, and, looking in the rear-view mirror of their career, they don't know that they'd have taken any different turns along the way.

"There are millions of maybes out there," says Kassidy. "You can't run your life by what ifs."

The three sisters are all active members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They pray before each concert and serve in various Church callings.

Information provided from: Greg Prato & Steve Huey, All Music Guide; Osmond Network; SHeDAISY.com; LDSMusicNews