Broadway's 'Legally Blonde' Star Credits Music From Before Her Time

Sept. 14, 2007— -- For Laura Bell, music comes as naturally as walking.

The 2007 Tony Award nominee learned to sing at the age of 4 by mimicking singers of the '40s and '50s at her grandfather's house, long before she was impressing audiences as Elle Woods in "Legally Blonde the Musical" on Broadway.

"He basically played Rosemary Clooney and Dean Martin and Pearl Bailey," Bell said. "So I grew up listening to that at his house."

Wherever the 26-year-old Lexington, Ky., native went, music followed. As a child Bell remembers waking to music every morning.

Her introduction to country music came in her mother's blue Mazda when she attempted to mimic a rendition of Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers' "Islands in the Stream."

Practice eventually made perfect, and made singing a way of life for Bell. At the age of 9, her career began when she starred in "Ruthless: The Musical."

Bell credits her upbringing for her love of different musical styles, not only as a singer but as an actress. Bell has appeared in the films "Dream Girls" and "Jumanji," as well as on the television shows "Veronica Mars," "Home Improvement" and "Guiding Light."

But the screen and the stage are not the only places where fans can find Bell. The multitalented star has returned to her roots with a new album called "Longing for a Place Already Gone."

"In a lot of ways, I'm an extremely nostalgic person," Bell said. "The music that I'm inspired by is music that was made before I was born; and this album is inspired by that."

Bell calls her style of country music the "Y" alternative.

"Country is the music that I write; over the years, it's become what I feel, what just sort of comes naturally," Bell said. "It's alternative country so it can be whatever it is going to be."

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