Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, June 2, 1995 TAG: 9506030007
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DIXIE REID SACRAMENTO BEE
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
She's been married three times, widowed once and divorced twice. Little is known of that first union, but her second husband, country singer-songwriter Keith Whitley, died of an alcohol overdose six years ago. Then she had a brief marriage to Clint Black's bus driver and, later, a love affair with Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman. Now she's keeping company with Fred Thompson, the freshman senator from Tennessee.
The press, tabloid and otherwise, follows Morgan's every romance, marriage and break-up. And there's always some mention made of her wardrobe, which tends toward low-cut, tight and slinky.
OK, it has to be said: Lorrie Morgan is the Madonna of country music.
She's performing at 8 Saturday night at the Salem Civic Center.
"I think sometimes, especially in country music, the fans feel so close to an artist that they think they have a right to know things I don't believe they do," Morgan said in an interview. "I believe it's the artist's choice how much they want to let people know.
"I've always been honest about my relationships, and I've been taught that the more you try to hide, the more they want to find out. In my case, unfortunately, it's not true. The more I talk, the more they want to know," she said, chuckling.
Morgan, 35, said she airs the affairs of her heart for the therapy of the confession. And she makes no apologies for the clothes that accentuate her Barbie-doll physique. She's happy with her image which, this year, moved from the sexy blacks and reds to come-hither costumes in pastels.
"People may say it's too sexy for country music, but look at the old pictures of Dottie West and Dolly Parton. If that's not too sexy for country music, nothing is," Morgan said. "I'm tired of baggy jackets and baggy pants. I think to a degree that's a cool look, but it's a frumpy look that's unflattering to me as a woman. I'm just glad [my look] has been accepted the way we intended it to be."
Beyond the flashy clothes and flashier affairs, though, is the other Lorrie Morgan, who is a single mom (her children are 14 and 8, and she will not talk publicly about them) who supports her family as a country singer.
Her songs always reflect the frankness and strength that is so much a part of her character. In "Watch Me," she warns a cheating lover, "If you think I won't go, watch me, watch me walk away." In "Something in Red," she tries to keep her man interested. And in "If You Came Back From Heaven," she shares her heartbreak over losing Whitley.
Her four albums have gone platinum. She's had a couple of No. 1 songs and will release a greatest-hits collection in late July. Her current single is "I Didn't Know My Own Strength."
Away from the concert stage, she got good reviews for her first acting job, on TNN's 1993 made-for-TV movie "Proudheart." That year, as well, the National Cosmetology Association voted her its "stylemaker of the year." Her personal tastes tend toward spicy chicken and Harley Davidsons.
Morgan's country roots go back a generation to her father, George Morgan, a country singer best known for his 1949 hit, "Candy Kisses." Five other artists covered it that year. Morgan died in 1975 at 51.
"Back when I first started in country music, you did it because you loved it, because it definitely wasn't where the big money was," Lorrie Morgan said. "A lot of people are wanting to get into it because it's the cool music, the easy music. A lot of 'em just don't realize the heritage that we've come from.
"It scares me how some people don't respect the paths that have been paved for us, and who they've been paved by," she said. "It scares me because I don't want it to lose the family oriented feeling and the feeling you get at the Grand Ole Opry listening to Jack Greene or Jim Ed Brown, and thinking, `Yeah, this is what it's all about.' ''
CONCERT CANCELLED: The Lorrie Morgan concert, scheduled for Saturday night at the Salem Civic Center, was canceled shortly before presstime because of low ticket sales. It has not been rescheduled. Call 375-3004 for ticket refund information.
by CNB