Suzy Bogguss is one of country music’s most pristine and evocative vocalists and a favorite on The Center's stage. With the release of the Illinois native’s 1989 major label debut, Somewhere Between, Suzy quickly became one of the key artists that defined those golden days of ’90s country. She scored a string of Top 10 singles with country radio staples like "Outbound Plane," "Drive South," "Hey Cinderella," "Letting Go," and "Aces," and her 1991 album of that name was certified platinum. In addition, she scored a trio of gold albums and notched more than 3 million sales.
Her latest album, Lucky, is her take on Merle Haggards songs, paying homage to an artist that influenced her from the beginning of her career. Lucky is remarkable in its freshness. Its acoustic-based arrangements, while sparse, crackle with vibrancy. Each song is driven by the perfect marriage of Suzy’s delicate voice and the adventurous, yet tasteful, playing of the band. It’s indicative of what Haggard himself would do in the studio. "Merle would experiment. He would take his band The Strangers into the studio and they’d be pioneers," Suzy says. "Each one of Merle’s records sounds fresh and you hear that in these different songs we chose. I really miss that fearlessness today."