Love at the Five and Dime: The Songwriting Legacy of Nanci Griffith

by Brian T. Atkinson

Genres: Music, Biography

416 pages, Hardcover

Published September 9, 2024

Reviews

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Terrific! Nanci has been, and is, the voice of my heart. Since I first discovered Little Love Affairs as a high schooler, her literate and melodic songs have resonated deeply. I managed to see her live more than five or six times in the late 80s and 90s, and I loved her completely. Atkinson’s book gathers recollections from her contemporaries, who talk about the backstage and studio side of her career as well as her influence on them. The stories of her darker side and the secluded last years of her life were particularly sad to read, making me wish that all of her fans could have reached out to let her know how much her music mattered to each of us.

[Barry Hammond · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nanci Griffith, the acclaimed Texas singer/songwriter/performer has been widely acclaimed for her songwriting skills with titles such as Gulf Coast Highway, Trouble In The Fields, Love At The Five And Dime, Ford Econoline, It's A Hard Life (Wherever You Go), On Grafton Street, Listen To The Radio, I Wish It Would Rain, and many others. She's also memorably covered and promoted songs by other writers she's admired: Across The Great Divide (Kate Wolf), Tecumseh Valley (Townes Van Zandt), Speed Of The Sound Of Loneliness (John Prine), From A Distance (Julie Gold), Morning Song For Sally (Jerry Jeff Walker), Can't Help But Wonder Where I'm Bound (Tom Paxton), Three Flights Up (Frank Christian), Desperados Waiting For A Train (Guy Clark), (Tonight I Think I'm Gonna Go Downtown (Jimmie Dale Gilmore). Her entire life was dedicated to writing and finding songs and bringing other songwriters into the light. Brian T. Atkinson has put together a remarkable document of the songs, career and her life, conducting and editing together interviews from those who knew her best. - BH.

[Doug · Rating 3 out of 5]

Love at the Five and Dime is a nice survey Nanci's career and her music. The story is told chronologically and is almost exclusively in the form of interviews with her musical peers and friends. The focus of Love at the Five and Dime is mostly on her musical career and the people whom she influenced. The book does touch on the dark side of her personality, as well as her mental health and alcoholism issues. I came away from reading Love at the Five and Dime with a desire to explore other singer-songwriter artists that Nanci associated with.

[James Hill · Rating 5 out of 5]

This has sent me into a deep dive of Griffith’s later output. I owned Intersections at one point, but it never struck. Re-listening and knowing it was her last album, it has more resonance. The personal narratives in the books from other singer songwriter’s added that background that I wasn’t previously aware of. This isn’t a straightforward narrative, but a structured timeline complied from various interviews. Highly recommended for music fans.

[Stevan Harden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Glorious and heartbreaking book about a wonderful singer/songwriter.