Shelby Lynne’s great imagination: A seasoned veteran’s perspectives on the music world

• Alexandra Hedison
• Shelby Lynne plays Variety Playhouse on Sun., May 31.

Alabama-raised singer/songwriter Shelby Lynne released her first album in 1989, and won a Grammy Award for “Best New Artist” in 2001. Not one to lose the sense of irony, she took it all with a grain of salt and realized she was finally making the right decisions. After too many years of being told what to do — label hopping, and missed opportunities — she left Nashville and never looked back. Since relocating to Palm Springs, Ca, Lynne has taken control of her destiny, and the positive results are apparent in the quality of her work.

Now that she owns the masters of that Grammy winning album I Am Shelby Lynne, she celebrated with a live DVD reissue late last year. This year she released her self-produced 13th album I Can’t Imagine (Rounder Records), and is touring the US, performing both albums in their entirety.

When asked about the double album concept, Lynne says: “I want people to get their money’s worth, and since we reissued I Am Shelby Lynne last year, I wanted to play it again. I own the masters now, Rounder agreed to put it out, and then asked me if I wanted to do a new album.”

A deep listen to both I Am Shelby Lynne and I Can’t Imagine reveals two things: Both records have a similar feel in terms of sound and subject matter. Both are amazingly produced, both have an underlying quality of sadness and longing, and both contain deeply personal and thought provoking lyrics. But Lynne is quick to dispel any literal connection between the two. “I really don’t compare my records, and there was no intention of any similarities,” she says. “When I write, I just let the songs roll out. Also, look at the length of time between those albums: 15 years. Within the moment of making music, it is really important at that moment.”

Lynne’s history is well-known, from the tragic loss of her parents to her struggles trying to break though in a tough business. Her songwriting has become so fluid and painfully honest, yet the melodies remain captivatingly beautiful. All are aspects of her life and songwriting that she has learned to navigate. “I am always checking for balance, but I don’t think I have any,” she says. “It falls into the whole art making process: No struggle, no art. The concept of the song ‘Paper Van Gogh’ is trying to find the art in everything,” she adds.

The effort to answer unanswerable questions is a culturally shared dilemma. Lynne observes: “I am trying to find my perfect self in the mirror. But I can’t. I write to express my pain/story/conflict in a way that I can then hand it over to you, and then you find your meaning. Life goes on, and if you feel it you write about it. We need a common ground and music is the ultimate communicator.”

So, it boils down to communication through art. Lynne has weathered many storms in her journey, and has never let her frustration overcome her imagination of a world we can understand and accept. Days fade away, but desire for truth lives on.

Shelby Lynne plays Variety Playhouse on Sun., May 31. $30-$130. 8 p.m. 1099 Euclid Ave. 404-524-7354. www.variety-playhouse.com.