Its only been 12 years since the release of Patty Griffins 1996 debut, Living With Ghosts, and really only half that since her name and music became something more than a cherished secret among a devout cult following of fans and artists like Emmylou Harris and the Dixie Chicks. But here in 2008, she is widely regarded as pretty much the gold standard in contemporary singer-songwriters especially in her adopted hometown of Austin, where her songs (sung by Griffin herself or the aforementioned Dixie Chicks) have enjoyed heavy rotation on local AAA/Americana station KGSR (107.1-FM) for most of the decade. Shes no one-trick pony, either; after the stripped-down intimacy of her debut (essentially the solo acoustic demo recordings that landed her her first record deal), Griffin roared like a lion on 1998s blazing Flaming Red and then dazzled with the stunningly gorgeous tapestry of 2002s 1,000 Kisses, which earned Griffin her first Grammy nomination. 2004s Impossible Dream and 2007s Children Running Through were nominated, too (all three nominations were for Best Contemporary Folk Album). Children Running Through was named Album of the Year at the 2007 Americana Music Associations Honors & Awards, with Griffin also winning Artist of the Year. And thats hard to argue with, considering not only her exquisite artistry and the uniformly rave reviews critics have given her albums over the years, but also the high esteem and outright awe with which shes regarded by some of her most illustrious peers. I would go anywhere, anytime, to hear Patty Griffin sing her extraordinary songs, raves Emmylou Harris.