MARY CHAPIN CARPENTER Vinyl Records and CDs

Carpenter is as unlikely a star as one can find in today's cookie-cutter, mainstream country music scene. She began her career in earnest on the folk music circuit in Washington, D.C., in the 1980s, making a name for herself and developing a sizeable following thanks to her smart songwriting and crystal clear vocals. After signing to a major label, her third record yielded a surprise smash hit with the Cajun-inflected Country Rock song "Down At the Twist and Shout," an ode to a favorite D.C. nightclub. Her fourth record featured several hits, including a version of Lucinda Williams' "Passionate Kisses," and won several awards, selling over two million copies.