What to Do on the Weekends

Country singer Patty Loveless will bring her songs of heartache to El Camino College’s Marsee Auditorium on Saturday.

Since her album debut in 1987, Loveless’ powerful vocals and raw-truth delivery of “traditional country with a little edge” have made her a standout on the country music scene.

She has had a steady flow of hits and industry awards, and earned a gold record in 1991.

Born Patty Ramey in Pikeville, Ky., in the mountainous eastern part of the state, she was 10 years old when the family moved to Louisville. By the time she was 12, she was singing duets with her older brother on local jamboree shows.

At age 14, with 30 songs to her credit, she replaced Loretta Lynn as the “girl singer” with the Grand Ole Opry’s Wilburn Brothers. When she left a few years later for a quieter life in North Carolina, she was Patty Lovelace, the teen-age bride of the band’s drummer.

By the time she re-entered the Nashville scene in 1986, she had re-christened herself Loveless, which she said was the way her ex-husband’s family pronounced their surname.

She had also developed one of country’s most versatile voices.

Loveless’ five albums since then have been critical favorites and commercial successes.

“I’ve been around so many people and heard too many heartbreaking stories,” she says, “that all I try to do is take those lyrics and give them edge.”

Who: Patty Loveless

Where: Marsee Auditorium, Crenshaw and Redondo Beach boulevards, Torrance

When: Saturday 8 p.m.

Tickets: $23 and $20, available at the campus ticket office or by telephone: (310) 329-5345 or (800) 832-ARTS