Welcome to Bonnie Whitmore's Official Website.

The National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences Committee
has placed Bonnie Whitmore on the
Official Ballot for the 2005 Grammy Awards

Category 1 - Record Of Year
Bonnie Whitmore - Hand of God

Category 2 - Album Of Year
Bonnie Whitmore - Picking Up Pieces

Category 3 - Song Of Year
Bonnie Whitmore - Hand of God

Category 4 - Best New Artist
Bonnie Whitmore

Field 8
Category 36 - Best Country Female Vocal Performance
Bonnie Whitmore - Next Lonely Love Song

Field 8
Category 41 - Best Country Song
Bonnie Whitmore - Hand of God

Field 8
Category 42 - Best Country Album
Bonnie Whitmore - Picking Up Pieces

Field 24
Category 85 - Best Recording Package
Bonnie Whitmore - Picking Up Pieces

• Listen to tracks from Bonnie's debut CD 'Picking Up Pieces'
and Buy the CD now!

At age 22, Texas native Bonnie Whitmore is already an 8-year veteran of the vigorous Austin music scene. 'Picking Up Pieces,' is her debut CD, a contemporary take on her country roots, showcasing her pure vocal quality and phrasing. She played a wide mix of instruments on the CD - acoustic guitar, bass, and cello. Veteran songwriter Brent Mitchell contributed one new composition to the record, 'Hand of God,' written especially for Whitmore.

• Bonnie's complete live dates

• Download Bonnie's press kit and promo photo

'Picking Up Pieces' Review
by Tom Geddie for Buddy Mag in Dallas, TX

Watching someone grow up is often fascinating. Watching an artist like Bonnie Whitmore grow up and mature is fascinating and satisfying and intriguing. Where does the talent come from? Where is she going to go? Is she going to successfully navigate the odd river of art and business that flow from the talent?

I met Whitmore in a bar. I was walking into the Lone Star Cafe for KHYI's Wednesday night pickin' party. Saw, in the dark, a pretty blonde way out in the parking lot. I stared a little, and she looked back and waved and, across three rows of cars, shouted, "Hi!" I waved back and went on in.

Whitmore came in. She was 15 at the time, almost 16, and she was playing bass for her dad, Alex, that night (I was vaguely embarrassed). She was already playing bass for Brent Mitchell's band, and was a cellist in the Fort Worth Youth Orchestra. Her mom, Marti, is a classical soprano and her older sister, Eleanor, is a fine fiddler/violinist.

Now Whitmore is in her early 20's. She moved to Austin, toured with Shelley King and Frank Neville and played bass and cello on a number of studio recordings. She is establishing herself as a solo performer, too, and in a duet with Jamie Blythe.

She is growing up.

Please forgive the personal notes. Here are some thoughts about the new CD, 'Picking Up Pieces' : Five of the songs, including one co-write, are Whitmore's. The other seven are covers: three by Blythe and one each by Mitchell, Stacey Earle, Jenny Reynolds, and Brian Reed of the EvinRudes. They are good choices for Whitmore's alt-folk-pop style and voice, which is strong and restrained, and with a hint of delicacy like a child growing up.

Blythe's "Cool Chameleon" - "Everyone wants a piece of me / 'cause I get inside their mind / but I'm just a cool chameleon / whose real home she'll never find" - is a moving song about looking for your place in the world. Congas, electric guitar, and bass combine with Whitmore's vocals for a subtle but appropriately edgy sound.

Mitchell's "The Hand of God" - "The hand of God is missing some fingers / its creases are a novel / for a gypsy palm reader" - is well, maybe, profound in its naturalness.

Reynolds' "Was It You" becomes a sometimes guttural challenge woven with the other instruments over Eleanor's lonely fiddle. "One Drum," written by Whitmore and Harmony McGill, is a sexy, poetic, deeply human song, paced by congas and cello, of longing. Reed's "Drive Me Home" is a sassy challenge - "somebody stop me before I tell the truth."

Alex Whitmore produced. Marti played keyboards. Eleanor played fiddle. Bonnie played acoustic guitar, bass, and cello. Josh Ingram and Drew Campbell played drums and congas. Sam Sanchez played electric guitar. A whole bunch of folks added back-up vocals.

Whitmore has already been on a couple of CDs, but 'Picking Up Pieces' is her first "real" one. She probably couldn't have made one this good a year, maybe two, ago.