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“I always go where the song leads me. The song comes first; it has to. Genre is never a consideration.”
Kate Schutt, Singer, Songwriter, Jazz Guitarist
Chapter 9 - Kate Schutt: Presence Not Perfection
Three themes guide the life and lyrics of guitarist and singer‐ songwriter Kate Schutt: “presence not perfection,” “all in with pluck and zeal,” and “being enough.”
Kate lives by these words—words that have been hard earned.
When her mother was diagnosed with cancer, Kate became her full‐time caregiver. For nearly five years she caused herself to be present, all in, enough.
As she lived this horrible, rotten, sometimes achingly beautiful, and often terrifying experience, Kate kept a note‐ book. Out of that notebook came Bright Nowhere, an album that bravely looks death in the eye and melts listeners’ hearts....
So begins our chapter on the life of singer-songwriter Kate Schutt and the difficult journey that led her to write Bright Nowhere, which eight-time Grammy-winning producer Kevin Killen calls “the ultimate reveal with storytelling so emotionally raw and honest, yet, truly inspirational in its humanity and musicality.”
(Kate's story is intensely moving. It also leaves us looking at how to be present for others and give up perfection, whether we're performing for an audience or comforting a loved one. Follow Kate's journey in Music Mavens.)
Photo Gallery
Kate Schutt: Square By Square
Photo by Andreea Ballen
Kate Schutt watched her mom sort through box after box of family photos despite the side effects of chemotherapy and radiation. Out of that experience came the song "Square By Square" on her album Bright Nowhere.
Video
"How Much In Love" by Kate Schutt
"How Much in Love?” - cowritten by Kate Schutt and Jesse Ruddock - won the 2007 John Lennon Songwriting Contest for Jazz. Here, she performs it with the Mark Shilansky quintet at the Berklee Performance Center. The Band: Mark Shilansky - piano | Eric Byers - guitar | Keala Kaumeheiwa - bass | Steve Langone - drums | Jared Sims - saxes | Kate Schutt - vocals, guitar.
Kate Schutt - Fight The Good Fight (Official Lyric Video)
"Fight the Good Fight" - Music and Lyrics by Kate Schutt
from Kate's album Bright Nowhere
Credits: Rob Mounsey, piano and keyboards | Rich Hammond, bass | Chris Parker, drums | Kate Schutt, vox & nylon-string and acoustic guitars | Matt Beck, electric guitars | Nicki Richards, background vocals | Vaneese Thomas, background vocals | Everett Bradley, background vocals | Roger Squitero, percussion | Produced and Arranged by Rob Mounsey | Engineered by Kevin Killen | Mixed by Jay Newland at River Music Studios, Norwalk, CT | Mastered by Mark Wilder at Battery Mastering Studios, NYC
Kate Schutt - Mothers
"Mothers" - Music & Lyrics by Kate Schutt from Kate's album Bright Nowhere
Credits: Kate Schutt - Guitar & Vocals | Julian Lage - Guitar | Scott Colley - Bass | | Carlos Perez Bustillo - Videographer | Evan Dibbs - Videographer | Mark Goodell - Audio & Mix Engineer | Evan Moore - Video Editing
Filmed at Joe’s Garage, Brooklyn, NY, September 2021
"The Spring That Felt Like Fall" - Kate Schutt
"The Spring That Felt Like Fall" - Music & Lyrics by Kate Schutt from Kate's album Bright Nowhere
This song was written for Kate's mom as she was dying of ovarian cancer. She explains, "I was her primary caregiver. We made the decision to stop her treatments and go with hospice care. This song marks that wrenching turn."
It was included in a collection of jazz compositions titled New Standards: 101 Lead Sheets By Women Composers (Berklee Press, 2022) by Terri Lyne Carrington, Founder and Artistic Director of the Berklee Institute of Jazz and Gender Justice. This compilation is important in the jazz world because it introduces the work of female composers long missing from the canon of jazz standards. (The book also includes a composition by Music Maven Regina Carter.)
Kate Schutt - Roll the Stone Back - on the Monica Grant Show
"Roll The Stone Back" - Music & Lyrics by Kate Schutt from Kate's album Bright Nowhere - performed on The Monica Grant Show in October 2021
A Grief Casserole: How to help your friends & family through loss | TEDxWestChester
Kate Schutt (pronounced “shut”), who spent four years as her mom’s primary caregiver, writing songs about the dark and the light of her mother’s journey from diagnosis to death of ovarian cancer, wants us all to know how to show up for our grieving friends so they don’t feel alone with their loss.
Kate Schutt - Wrecking Ball
"Wrecking Ball " from Kate's album No Love Lost • Lyrics by Kate Schutt & Koko Bonaparte • Music by Kate Schutt
Credits: Kate Schutt - 8-string guitar/bass hybrid, electric guitar, bass, vocals | Dave Jamrog -- drums | Duane Andrews -- acoustic guitar | Patrick Boyle -- trumpet | Mark Shilansky -- piano | Tony Lynn Washington -- backing vox | Koko Bonaparte -- rhyme | Jeff Louie -- violin | Chloe Kline -- viola | Nat Barrett -- cello | Paul Reddick -- harmonic | Strings arranged by Jeff Louie Paul Reddick | Engineered by Jon Chase and Andrew McPherson | Mixed by John Chase & Kate | Mastered by Joao Carvalho at Carvalho Mastering .
Spotify Playlist
Music Mavens: 15 Women of Note in the Industry
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