Susan Gibson at Susanna’s Kitchen

Texas singer-songwriter Susan Gibson has long been a road warrior. Playing house concerts and festivals, as well as teaching workshops and classes on songwriting, has led her all across the country.

Born in Fridley, Minnesota, and raised in Amarillo, Gibson began penning songs early on. Then a song she wrote during college while sitting at her parents’ kitchen table caught the Dixie Chicks’ attention. They recorded Gibson’s “Wide Open Spaces” in 1998 on an album of the same name. It earned the Dixie Chicks a Grammy, sold more than 16 million copies worldwide, and earned Gibson a CMA award for Single of the Year.

Discovering that others loved her songwriting transformed the trajectory of her life. She began doing what she loved most, first at open mics and then on the Texas touring circuit. She fronted an Amarillo-based band The Groobees for several years. before going solo. Along the way, she’s collected other awards, including BMI’s “Songwriter of the Year” and “Entertainer of the Year” from the West Texas Music Hall of Fame.

Music royalties from “Wide Open Spaces” allowed her to buy a small spread in the Wimberley area. She also acquired a camper van, which became home on the road for her and her dogs. But after her mother’s death and during the last years of her father’s life, travel took a back seat. She brought him to San Marcos where she and her sister cared for him. He passed in 2017.

Last fall she released her most recent album, The Hard Stuff, written as she came to terms with losing both parents within four years. The real magic is in her songwriting, sewn right into the vibrant fabric of disarming, buoyant melodies. They illuminate her perspectives on life, love, work, and loss (sometimes all within the same song). Yet Gibson’s songs have an easy-going playfulness too and an ability to laugh at herself.

Don’t miss Susan Gibson on March 19th at Susanna’s Kitchen Coffeehouse, located at Wimberley United Methodist Church (corner RR 12 & CR 1492). The concert starts at 7:30, and doors open by 7:00 p.m. Pizza, tamales, pie, coffee, and soft drinks are available. Tickets are sold at the door. Admission is $20 for adults, $5 for kids (under 18). Proceeds benefit several local nonprofits: The Barnabas Connection, Operation Good Shepherd, Camp Good Sam Wimberley, and Bright Beginnings Preschool. More information at www.wimberleyumc.org.