Pop Quiz: Lori McKenna

Pop Quiz: Lori McKenna

Aidin Vaziri | Lori McKenna has made Oprah cry on national television. Her songs have been recorded by Mandy Moore and Faith Hill, who with husband Tim McGraw returned the favor this summer by asking McKenna to support them on the highest-grossing country music tour in history. And, this week, the 38-year-old Boston-area singer-songwriter releases her major-label debut, "Unglamorous." Not bad for a mother of five - ages 3 to 18 - who just last year was driving to local shows in the family minivan. We spoke to her by phone from her home in Stoughton, Mass.

Lori McKenna
Q: There's a song on your album called "Drinkin' Problem." What inspired that?
A: I like to write songs about drinking.
Q: Did you write from personal experience?
A: No, I'm not a good drinker. I'm only good for two beers. Maybe that's why I like to write songs about drinking. But I come from an Irish Catholic background, and you can't spit without hitting an alcoholic in our family. I always make an ass out of myself anyway, so God knows what I would do if I was a drunk.
Q: You worked at your brother's glue factory for 15 years. Have you ever written a song called "Glue Sniffin' Problem"?
A: I've never written a song about glue, but I've written songs about working in factories. I did every job in that company. Every time I had a baby I got a different position. That's probably where my brain cells went. Everybody in my family is very smart except me. I think it might have been the glue. Read more.