That mix is proving to be quite successful on Shania Twain's second Mercury Nashville album, "The Woman In Me." On the album, Twain's country music meets her husband Robert John "Mutt" Lange's rock production and songwriting skills.
This week, "The Woman In Me," released Feb. 7, jumps from No. 99 to No. 75 with a bullet on The Billboard 200 and from No. 13 to No. 9 with a bullet on the Top Country Albums chart.

If it weren't for the encouragement from Lange, Twain says she probably would have shopped for songs instead of putting her songwriting abilities to work.
On the album, she wrote one song by herself and co-wrote 10 others with Lange, who has produced such acts as Def Leppard, AC/DC, and the Cars. Lange also penned one song by himself for the album.

Twain did not write any of the material on her 1993 self-titled debut album. That album failed to crack The Billboard 200 and only reached No. 67 on the Top Country Albums chart.

"A lot of the inspiration on this comes from the magic between us," says the Windsor, Ontario-born Twain. "A lot of the songs I had written during the first album, but when Mutt and I got together to collaborate, the songs finally came together."

The album is also close to spawning a top 10 country hit with its first single, "Whose Bed Have Your Boots Been Under?" The song is No. 11 with a bullet on the Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart this week. Her previous peak on that chart was No. 55 in 1993 with "Dance With The One That Brought You."

"The big difference on this album is that it's more of me," says Twain. "It's more of the way you would hear me singing around the house. A lot of these songs I had written for the first album, but they weren't heard or they were overlooked, which was a blessing in disguise because they were saved for Mutt."

Twain, who was raised in Timmins, Ontario, 500 miles north of Toronto, began performing professionally at age 8. At age 21, after her parents died in a car accident, she began supporting herself and her siblings as a musician.

However, it wasn't until a few years later, when her siblings were old enough to move out, that she decided to take her musical career seriously. She landed a deal with Mercury after Nashville attorney Richard Frank traveled to Canada to see her perform.

Years later, she struck up a long-distance telephone relationship with Lange and began writing songs over the phone until finally meeting him in person at Fan Fair in June 1993. They were married in December of that year.

"He felt like someone I could trust," says Twain. "I would sing over the phone, and he would tape it and work on it. It's been the biggest thrill for me, to be able to write my own songs. I feel complete now."

Lange's rock/pop production techniques certainly shine through on "The Woman In Me."

Says Chris Huff, music director at KPLX Dallas, "It's a unique production sound with Mutt doing it. It has an in-your-face production, which is really different for country radio now. It's hard to describe, but it's a sound that will expand country music, just like how the Tractors did with 'Baby Likes To Rock It.' "

Aside from helping to give Twain a new sound, John Grady, VP of sales at Mercury Nashville, says the Lange connection has helped open doors overseas for Twain as well.

Grady says that by having an "internationally known producer like Lange," Twain has been afforded more opportunities for promotional visits in Europe.

"We got a lot more press, because of the Mutt connection as well," adds Grady. "But it really all came together because of the song."

Mercury's marketing efforts went into full force when the single started to take off in late March.

"The whole crux of the marketing plan was to try to have the majority of advertising and in-store plans in place during peak airplay," says Grady. "But the record sold from the first day. We did 3,000 units the first week."

One of the marketing tools the label used was a 60-second spot that ran on KKBQ Houston's morning show for a week in March. Instead of a co-op spot with a retailer, Grady says the "infomercial" resembled a short feature.

"Our sales basically tripled in Houston around that time," says Grady.

Sales of the album are up to 75,000 units, according to SoundScan.

Twain's striking good looks have also entered into the marketing plans. The label distributed a 1995 calendar of her (much like the one Warner Bros./Nashville made for Faith Hill) to retailers and radio professionals.

"It hasn't hurt, I think it helped a bit," says John Artale, purchasing manager at the 139-store National Record Mart chain, based in Carnegie, Pa. "This record is a true crossover, and it reminds me almost of Connie Francis. It's kind of peppy."
Grady says Twain's good looks work both ways. "It's a positive for males and 50-50 for females," he says. "Yet we are selling a huge portion to females because she speaks to females in songs like 'Any Man Of Mine' or 'The Woman In Me (Needs The Man In You).' "

While Twain did go out on a six-week promotional trek in December and January, the artist has yet to embark on a concert tour to support the album.

Grady says she should hit the road at the end of the summer, which is when Mercury Nashville is planning a TV advertising campaign.