One of the reasons why The Civil Wars work so well is the effortless collaboration between its two members, Joy Williams and John Paul White. And it had better work well: they travel without a band, playing their music with just guitar and piano. Plus two beautiful voices.
What I found most unique about their creative process is its genesis. Most artists start with the music, and the words flow from that. A few, but not many, start with the words. The Civil Wars begin with both: when Williams and White get together (both are veteran songwriters and are not married to each other), White "noodles" on the guitar as they talk about what's going on in each of their lives. It's that combination of noodling and conversation that leads to the ideas for their songs. (Of course, I'd also argue that prolific output like this is due to their love of William Faulkner and Flannery OConnor, but that's another story.)
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