Nicki Bluhm – How Strong Is A Woman
Today, Nashville-based singer-songwriter Nicki Bluhm pays tribute to the late prolific Stax Records songwriter Bettye Crutcher by sharing her empowering rendition of “How Strong Is A Woman,” released on what would’ve been her 87th birthday.
Originally written by Crutcher and cut by Ann Peebles in 1972, the song was updated by Bluhm and Grammy-winning producer Matt Ross-Spang, who worked closely with Crutcher shortly before her passing to revise its lyrics, which now emphasize how the true strength of a woman is rooted in self-love. The new rendition was recently featured at Relix, who shared more insight into the pioneering songwriter.
“Reexploring this song was both an honor and an undertaking,” says Bluhm, who cut this new version at the iconic Sam Phillips Recording Services in Memphis. “A lot has changed in those 50+ years, and as we’ve evolved, the meaning in this title has too. I think Bettye understood that better than anyone, which is why she was open to modernizing the lyrics with Matt Ross-Spang and me. Matt is a very dear friend, exceptional producer and deep appreciator of musical history. We have made a lot of music together, and this collaboration between him, Bettye and myself was really special. As we communed in Bettye’s home – her elegantly smoking Parliaments – the biggest lyrical departure we agreed upon was changing the original line, ‘A woman is strong as the need of the man she loves’ to ‘A woman is strongest when she has her own self-love.’ The takeaway, of course, being that a woman’s strength is not dependent on a man, but rather on how she honors and values herself. Music carries mantras, and I hope this is one that young women of today can hear and live by.”
Ross-Spang on the collaboration: “Some of my most fulfilling creative memories have come from collaborating with Nicki Bluhm. Her voice is a rare gift – one that seamlessly transcends space and time. Together, we dreamed up a vision to update the lyrics of ‘How Strong Is A Woman’ and transform it into a modern anthem. We knew we had our work cut out for us; the original version carries an incredible energy, anchored by a legendary performance from Ann Peebles. We met Bettye at her home in Nashville, and just sitting with her, we instantly felt we were sitting with royalty. She welcomed us like family, serving up bowls of homemade gumbo and ice cream. She regaled us with stories of Stax and her beloved husband, and in the pauses we reworked the lyrics. I hope this version inspires just as Bettye did for Nicki and me.”
Last fall, Bluhm released her eighth studio album Rancho Deluxe, a musical patchwork quilt that captured Nashville’s collaborative spirit and found the San Francisco native reflecting on hard-earned lessons from two decades in the music business. The record has since garnered acclaim from Relix, Magnet Magazine, Atwood Magazine, Nashville Scene and Americana UK, who hailed it as “a timeless collection of songs rooted in the here and now,” while Glide Magazine raved it’s “her strongest album yet.”
Rancho Deluxe was the follow-up to Bluhm’s 2023 Cher tribute album, The Beat Goes On, and her 2022 original LP Avondale Drive, which was met with praise from PopMatters and The Bluegrass Situation. Over the years, she has toured with the likes of Phil Lesh and Bob Weir, sharing the stage with the same icons who have helped inspire her trademark mix of rock, California country and hippie soul. On this latest chapter in her accomplished career, she says, “I’m growing, I’m reflecting, and I’m recalibrating. I’m forging ahead in a new way, but doing it on my own terms this time.”
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