Julie Anne Miller (born Julie Griffin, July 12, 1956) is a songwriter, singer, and recording artist living in

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and th ...

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 36th-largest by ...

. She married

Buddy Miller Steven Paul "Buddy" Miller (born September 6, 1952) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, recording artist and producer, currently living in Nashville, Tennessee. Miller is married to and has recorded with singer-songwriter Julie Miller ...

in 1981. They sing and play on each other's solo projects and have recorded three duet albums.

Career

Recordings

Julie Miller's first professionally released recording was with the group ''Streetlight'' which consisted of Julie,

, and Ron Krueger. The self-titled album was released in 1983. Julie and Buddy wrote some songs for the LP, including the original version of "Jesus in Your Eyes" (later re-recorded for ''Orphans and Angels''). "How Could You Say No" (written by Mickey Cates) was originally performed on this album and later included on Julie's solo debut ''Meet Julie Miller''. A 1985 demo tape recorded by Julie listed eight songs, but contained eleven. Two of these songs were later included on ''Meet Julie Miller'', but the remaining nine songs were not reissued. Songs on this tape include: "I Don't Need Anything Else", "Mystery Love" (Synth Pop Version), "Love Is", "I Look to You", "I Don't Need", "What Does it Take", "I Wanna Be Ready", "King of my Heart" (not the same as that which appeared later on her first Myrrh release), "My New Psychiatrist" (Synth Pop Version with different lyrics), "Debby Came Back", "Dangerous Place" (Synth Pop Version). Only one copy of this tape has seen circulation; it is unknown whether Julie used the tape to shop for a record label, or sold them at concerts. Julie's musical career initially took off after singer

Sam Phillips Samuel Cornelius Phillips (January 5, 1923 – July 30, 2003) was an American record producer. He was the founder of Sun Records and Sun Studio in Memphis, Tennessee, where he produced recordings by Elvis Presley, Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis, ...

forwarded her demo tape to friends at

Myrrh Records __NOTOC__ Myrrh Records (also known as Myrrh Worship) was an American Christian music record label. According to ''Encyclopedia of American Gospel Music'', the label was instrumental in developing a popular following for contemporary Christian ...

. Myrrh signed Miller to a contract and released ''Meet Julie Miller'' (her first solo album) in 1990. This album included backing vocals from

Shawn Colvin Shawn Colvin (born Shawna Lee Colvin, January 10, 1956) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. While Colvin has been a solo recording artist for decades, she is best known for her 1998 Grammy Award-winning song " Sunny Came Home". Early ...

Victoria Williams Victoria Williams (born December 23, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter and musician, originally from Shreveport, Louisiana, United States, although she has resided in Southern California throughout her musical career. Diagnosed with multi ...

Amy Grant Amy Lee Grant (born November 25, 1960) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician. She began in contemporary Christian music (CCM) before crossing over to pop music in the 1980s and 1990s. She has been referred to as "The Queen of Christia ...

Kelly Willard Kelly Willard (born on August 18, 1956) is a contemporary Christian musician best known for her praise and worship recordings. She was featured as a soloist on projects from Integrity, Vineyard Music, and Maranatha! Music. In addition she sang d ...

and

Russ Taff Russell Taff (born November 11, 1953) is an American gospel singer and songwriter who grew up in Farmersville, California. He has sung a variety of musical styles throughout his career including: pop rock, traditional Southern gospel, contemp ...

. Miller's second solo album ''He Walks Through Walls'' (1991) also included backing vocals from Colvin, Williams, Grant and Willard.

Mark Heard John Mark Heard III (December 16, 1951 – August 16, 1992) was an American record producer, folk rock singer and songwriter from Macon, Georgia. Heard released sixteen albums, and produced or performed with many artists, including: Sam P ...

and Reverend Dan Smith also contributed vocals. This album included the original version of the song "Broken Things", which was later re-recorded. Her 1993 album ''Orphans and Angels'' included a duet with

Emmylou Harris Emmylou Harris (born April 2, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter and musician. She has released dozens of albums and singles over the course of her career and has won 14 Grammys, the Polar Music Prize, and numerous other honors, includin ...

on "All My Tears", which was written after the death of Mark Heard.

Jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

vocalist

Jimmy Scott James Victor Scott (July 17, 1925 – June 12, 2014), known professionally as Little Jimmy Scott or Jimmy Scott, was an American jazz vocalist known for his high natural contralto voice and his sensitivity on ballads and love songs. After ...

also contributed vocals. Miller also covered Heard's song "Treasure of the Broken Land". Shawn Colvin once again contributed background vocals. The video of the song "S.O.S." from this album was released to Christian TV. Her fourth solo album ''Invisible Girl'' was released by Street Level Records. Julie covered

The Williams Brothers The Williams Brothers featuring Andy Williams were a singing quartet formed in the mid 1930s. They initially entertained on radio stations and later appeared in four musical films in the 1940s. After recording with Bing Crosby led to a nightc ...

song " Can't Cry Hard Enough". Victoria Williams, Mark Olson and the Electrics provided background vocals. In 1997, Julie Miller released '' Blue Pony'' (

Hightone Records HighTone Records was an American independent record label based in Oakland, California, United States. HighTone specialized in American roots music including, country, rockabilly, western swing, blues and gospel. The label was created by Larry ...

) which includes contributions from

, and

Valerie Carter Valerie Gail Zakian Carter (February 5, 1953 – March 4, 2017) was an American singer. Biography Carter began her career singing in coffeehouses as a teenager, and eventually became one-third of the country-folk band Howdy Moon. Though they de ...

. Her most recent solo album is ''Broken Things'' in 1999, which includes new versions of "Broken Things" and "All My Tears" as well as new songs "I Know Why The River Runs," "Orphan Train," "Out in the Rain" and "I Still Cry." The song "By way of Sorrow" was a duet with Innocence Mission's Karen Peris. In 2001, the first Buddy and Julie Miller duo album ''

Buddy & Julie Miller ''Buddy & Julie Miller'' is a 2001 album by Buddy and Julie Miller. Prior to this recording the husband and wife singer-songwriters had each made appearances on the other's solo recordings, but this disc marked their first official release as a ...

'' was released in 2001. This album won the Americana Music Association award for best album in 2002. Released in 2002, ''Love Snuck Up'' was a compilation of the Millers' Hightone recordings. A Julie Miller compilation is planned, which will include tracks selected by Julie from her first four albums, which have been out of print for many years.

Work with other artists

In 1987 Julie contributed background vocals to the song "Remember Me" on

Benny Hester Benny Ray Hester (born May 3, 1948) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and recording artist. He is perhaps best known for his songs "When God Ran" and "Nobody Knows Me Like You", and for producing the groundbreaking tween/teen music-dr ...

's album ''Through the Window''. In 1992, Julie provided the title track for ''Cry of the Heart: Emily's Eyes'', an album released to bring hope to victims of child abuse. Julie mentioned after a 2002 concert in Kentucky that the song "Emily's Eyes" had one line edited out of it, as there was concern regarding the "implications". No further details were provided. In 1994, Julie and Buddy Miller recorded Mark Heard's "Orphans of God" which was the title track for the single CD Mark Heard Tribute album Strong Hand of Love. They also assisted Victoria Williams on her version of "What Kind of Friend". Later that same year, both songs were included on the two-CD Mark Heard Tribute

Orphans of God ''Orphans of God'' is a 1996 two-CD compilation of songs performed by various artists in tribute to songwriter Mark Heard. Recorded and released after Heard's death in 1992, proceeds from the album benefit the Heard Family Fund. This album was li ...

, with the song "What kind of Friend" expanded by nearly a full minute. Julie's composition, "By Way of Sorrow," was an inspiration for the tone of

Cameron Crowe Cameron Bruce Crowe (born July 13, 1957) is an American journalist, author, writer, producer, director, actor, lyricist, and playwright. Before moving into the film industry, Crowe was a contributing editor at '' Rolling Stone'' magazine, for w ...

's movie ''

Vanilla Sky ''Vanilla Sky'' is a 2001 American science fiction thriller film directed, written, and co-produced by Cameron Crowe. It is an English-language remake of Alejandro Amenábar's 1997 Spanish film '' Open Your Eyes'', which was written by Amenábar ...

'' but the song was not featured in the film.

Covers of Julie Miller songs

Many artists have recorded songs composed by Julie Miller, and Julie and Buddy. See the list of songs written by Buddy and Julie Miller for an extensive list. After the 1998

Omagh bombing The Omagh bombing was a car bombing on 15 August 1998 in the town of Omagh in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It was carried out by the Real Irish Republican Army (Real IRA), a Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) splinter group who oppo ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label=Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is #Descriptions, variously described as ...

, local singer Juliet Turner performed a version of Miller's song "Broken Things" at a memorial service for the victims of the bombing.

Touring and performing

Julie and Buddy Miller teamed up with Victoria Williams, Mark Olson, and

Jim Lauderdale James Russell Lauderdale (born April 11, 1957) is an American country, bluegrass, and Americana singer-songwriter. Since 1986, he has released 31 studio albums, including collaborations with artists such as Dr. Ralph Stanley, Buddy Miller, a ...

for a European tour billed as "The Rolling Creek Dippers" in the 90s.

Personal life

Julie has been married to

since 1981. They met in 1976 in

Austin Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

when Buddy auditioned for and played in a band with her. They live in

, where Buddy has set up a home studio on the main floor for music recording and production. She has battled the effects of fibromyalgia, mood swings, and depression.

Compositions

Discography

Solo and with Buddy Miller

Music videos

As contributing musician

* 1984:

Dennis Agajanian Dennis Agajanian is an American Christian musician of Armenian descent. who has recorded over 20 albums. Agajanian has played at churches around the world in 120 countries, having also been featured at the Harvest Crusades and Billy Graham ...

- ''Where Are The Heroes'' (Sparrow) * 1990:

- ''Swing The Statue!'' (Rough Trade) * 1993:

Wes King Wes King (born January 20, 1966) is an American contemporary Christian singer, songwriter, photographer, and musician. He is perhaps best known for his 1993 album ''The Robe.'' His demo material, a cassette tape named "Lonely Poet", is sung by ot ...

- ''The Robe'' (RCA) * 1995: Nina Åström - ''Moods'' (Spark) * 1995: Kate Miner - ''Sacred'' (Cadillac Fund Productions) * 1998:

Candle A candle is an ignitable wick embedded in wax, or another flammable solid substance such as tallow, that provides light, and in some cases, a fragrance. A candle can also provide heat or a method of keeping time. A person who makes candle ...

- '' Bullfrogs and Butterflies II: God Loves Fun'' (Birdwing) * 1998: Lee Ann Womack - ''

Some Things I Know ''Some Things I Know'' is the second studio album by American country music artist Lee Ann Womack. It was released in 1998 and rose to the #20 position on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart. The album's first two singles, "A Little Past Little ...

'' (Decca) * 1998: Patty Griffin - '' Flaming Red'' (A&M) * 1998:

- ''Musings of a Creek Dipper'' (Atlantic) * 2000: Bill Mallonee and

Vigilantes of Love Vigilantes of Love is an American rock band fronted by Bill Mallonee, with many secondary players drawn from the musician pool in and around Athens, Georgia, United States. In its later manifestations in the later 1990s and early 2000s, Mallone ...

– ''Audible Sigh'' (

Compass Records Compass Records is an independent record label founded in 1995 by musicians Garry West and Alison Brown that specializes in folk, bluegrass, Celtic, jazz, and acoustic music. In 2006, Compass purchased the Green Linnet and Xenophile catalogs ...

) * 2000:

- ''

Red Dirt Girl ''Red Dirt Girl'' is the nineteenth studio album by American country artist Emmylou Harris, released on September 12, 2000 by Nonesuch Records. The album was a significant departure for Harris, as eleven of the twelve tracks were written or co- ...

'' (Nonesuch) * 2000: Lee Ann Womack - ''

I Hope You Dance "I Hope You Dance" is a crossover country pop song written by Mark D. Sanders and Tia Sillers and recorded by American country music singer Lee Ann Womack with Sons of the Desert. (Drew and Tim Womack of Sons of the Desert are not related to L ...

'' (MCA Nashville) * 2000:

Tim Finn Brian Timothy Finn (born 25 June 1952) is a New Zealand singer and musician. His musical career includes forming 1970s and 1980s New Zealand rock group Split Enz, a number of solo albums, temporary membership in his brother Neil's band Crowd ...

- '' Say It Is So'' (Hypertension) * 2001:

John Hiatt John Robert Hiatt (born August 20, 1952) is an American singer-songwriter. He has played a variety of musical styles on his albums, including new wave, blues, and country. Hiatt has been nominated for nine Grammy Awards and has been awarded ...

- ''

The Tiki Bar Is Open ''The Tiki Bar is Open'' was singer-songwriter John Hiatt's sixteenth album released on September 11, 2001, the day of the 9/11 attacks. It was his last album with Vanguard Records. *Although they are uncredited, the album features backing band ...

'' (Vanguard) * 2002:

The Chieftains The Chieftains are a traditional Irish folk band formed in Dublin in 1962, by Paddy Moloney, Seán Potts and Michael Tubridy. Their sound, which is almost entirely instrumental and largely built around uilleann pipes, has become synonymous wi ...

- '' Down the Old Plank Road: The Nashville Sessions'' (RCA) * 2002:

- ''The Hummingbirds'' (Dualtone) * 2003:

- ''

Stumble into Grace ''Stumble into Grace'' is the twentieth studio album by American singer/songwriter Emmylou Harris, released on September 23, 2003 by Nonesuch Records. It peaked at No. 6 on the ''Billboard'' country albums chart. Like its immediate predecessor, ' ...

'' (Nonesuch) * 2003: Patty Griffin - '' A Kiss in Time'' (ATO) * 2005: Patty Griffin - ''

Impossible Dream ''Impossible Dream'' is the fourth studio album (fifth album overall) by the American folk musician Patty Griffin, released on April 20, 2004. The album features an unlisted song – Griffin’s mother and father singing “The Impossible Dream ...

'' (Proper) * 2005:

Jude Johnstone Jude Johnstone is an American singer-songwriter. Her songs have been covered by Laura Branigan, Trisha Yearwood, Emmylou Harris, Bonnie Raitt, Bette Midler, Johnny Cash, Stevie Nicks, Mary Black, and others. Johnstone wrote the No. 1 song "The ...

- ''On A Good Day'' (Bojak) * 2007:

Levon Helm Mark Lavon "Levon" Helm (May 26, 1940 – April 19, 2012) was an American musician who achieved fame as the drummer and one of the three lead vocalists for the Band, for which he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. H ...

- ''

Dirt Farmer A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field crops, orchards, vineyards, poultry, or other livestock. A farmer mig ...

'' (Vanguard) * 2010: Patty Griffin - ''

Downtown Church ''Downtown Church'' is the sixth studio album by American singer-songwriter Patty Griffin, released on January 26, 2010, by Credential Recordings, a Christian label distributed by EMI. The album was recorded in Downtown Presbyterian Church in Na ...

'' (Credential) * 2013:

- '' All Fall Down'' (

Nonesuch Records Nonesuch Records is an American record company and label owned by Warner Music Group, distributed by Warner Records (formerly called Warner Bros. Records), and based in New York City. Founded by Jac Holzman in 1964 as a budget classical label, No ...

) * 2014: Johnny Two Bags (

Jonny Wickersham Jonny "2 Bags" Wickersham (born May 26, 196 is an American musician who is currently a guitarist for the California punk rock band Social Distortion. He joined Social Distortion after the death of founding member and longtime friend Dennis Danel ...

) - ''

Salvation Town ''Salvation Town'' is the debut album from Jonny Wickersham, guitarist for punk band Social Distortion Social Distortion is an American punk rock band formed in 1978 in Fullerton, California. The band currently consists of Mike Ness (lead ...

'' (Isotone Records)

As primary contributing artist

* 1995: Various Artists - ''Noel'' (VIA Records) - track 10, "

Away in a Manger "Away in a Manger" is a Christmas carol first published in the late nineteenth century and used widely throughout the English-speaking world. In Britain, it is one of the most popular carols; a 1996 Gallup Poll ranked it joint second. Although i ...

" (with Buddy Miller)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, Julie 1956 births Living people American women singer-songwriters American women country singers American country singer-songwriters People from Dallas People from Waxahachie, Texas People from Nashville, Tennessee Singer-songwriters from Texas Country musicians from Texas Country musicians from Tennessee 21st-century American women Singer-songwriters from Tennessee