A coffee with Beth Black

Singer and jewelry designer Black bids farewell for now

By Marques G. Harper
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Thursday, July 16, 2009

Beth Black was well into a season of life changes when we met for coffee at BLU Cafe.

It was a few hours before the singer and jewelry designer's next gig, her farewell-for-now acoustic show at the One 2 One Bar in downtown Austin, and days before she'd venture to New York with her husband, drummer Keith Robinson, for a new life with Black's teenage daughter, who goes to school in New York.

By the time we met, she had already sold her car and leased her hilltop house on the border of West Lake Hills and Rollingwood for a year.

Her farewell show was a showcase of her old songs as well as her new pop-rock album, "Everything Unsaid" (Shrike Records), which was released in May after her six-year break from recording and shows. Her old fans welcomed her back, dropping by her recent shows at Lucky Lounge, Cedar Street Courtyard and other spots.

"It's liberating," Black, 45, said. "I like it so much more this time. I have nothing riding on it. All I wanted to do is sing rock and write songs."

Always a creative spirit, Black grew up the daughter of an oilman in Midland. In her teens, she left home to attend Walnut Hill, a performing arts high school near Boston. She later lived in New York and worked as a cabaret singer before heading to Los Angeles where she pursued acting and singing as a cast member of the Second City, an improvisational comedy group.

Over the years, Black worked at the SPCA and a jewelry store and taught preschool. She moved to Austin with her daughter in 1994 and found a community of artists, musicians and others who offered her support with her dream.

"Everybody needs to know their gifts," she said.

In her 30s, Black found her voice as a singer, releasing four albums between 1996 and 2002. (She was named one of the Top 15 Female Vocalists in Texas in the Austin Chronicle readers' polls in 1999, 2000 and 2001.)

But she figured out that pursing her musical dreams could be accomplished in a nontraditional way.

The new album was produced by Robinson, a man she pursued "because I wanted to be Mrs. Robinson," she said. "And he's really cute." They have been together since 1998 and married in 2002 just as she took a break to deal with health issues, build the family's home and spend time with daughter C.J.

The album, which contains 11 tracks including one offering advice to her daughter, was recorded in the couple's home studio.

"It was an opportunity to say what was on my mind in a format that was safe," Black said. "I really missed it."

Her new album, her first since taking the break, is dedicated to the late Jon Crosby Schultz, co-founder of Texas Music magazine.

Schultz's wife asked Black to perform at Schultz's memorial in 2006.

"If he were here," she said, "he'd be hounding me and coming by the house and asking, 'When are you writing? Do you have a gig?' I had been too long gone from what I love and what I think defines me."

Black's music isn't the only thing keeping her busy.

In recent weeks, she has expanded her Beth Black Jewelry line, which she also showed at a trunk show at Pav? Designs in Beverly Hills, Calif., during the spring. For our coffee, she wore an oversized necklace from her line and a maxi dress with a plunging neckline. Prices for Black's jewelry, which she designs but doesn't make herself, go from $300 to $1,800. Her lineup, which is made from semi-precious stones, sterling silver, 14-karat gold, and fossils, now includes rings, chains and earrings in addition to signature pieces such as the silver satin finish lips with a faceted labradorite drop pendant ($245).

Despite starting the line of bold jewelry in the 1980s, the designs fit nicely into the current statement jewelry craze.

Now Black will visit A-Town from time to time for show or jewelry events. She says she might move back full time after her 17-year-old daughter finishes school. For now, she doesn't mind being in the Big Apple that nurtured her creative spirit for a number of years. C.J., a budding actress and singer, also attended Walnut Hill near Boston, and now, as part of her senior year at the Professional Children's School, she will pursue acting roles and go to auditions in New York.

"It seemed like a good place for us to be," said Black, who sipped from a mug of black coffee. "And I had a jewelry opportunity up there. I took the opportunity to have her back in the house by moving up there with her. There will be a lot of people who wouldn't even know I left."

Moments later, Black had a slight change of heart. "There are so many consistent fans in this city," she said. "That's what I'll miss the most. It's not like that in New York. There's a real community here."

mharper@statesman.com; 445-3974