In honor of Women's History Month, this column takes a look at some recent releases by women who have been making music for a few years and how their sound has evolved.
When I think of female singer/songwriters who have had the most evolved careers, Joni Mitchell is the first one to come to mind. While I didn't always agree with the directions in which Mitchell was evolving (i.e. the jazz foray of Mingus), I see now how the results of all of her experimentation have made her a more sophisticated and accomplished artist.
I mentioned Joni's jazz foray, because I am having a similar reaction to the direction in which Ani DiFranco is moving on her new CD Evolve (Righteous Babe). It's been 13 years since we first heard the folk/punk songs of the righteous babe herself and Ms. DiFranco is now applying that edge to a funkier jazz sound. No stranger to horns (you can hear a trumpet as far back as 'Circle of Light' on 1992's Imperfectly, for example), DiFranco had a full-fledged brass section on her Little Plastic Castle disc in 1998. But on the intervening discs, she has struck a balance, whereas Evolve is evolving in another way. Still an amazing lyricist the troubling dialogue on 'Promised Land' between friends in which one confides, 'they say that the truth will set you free / but then so will a lie / it depends if you're trying to get to the promised land / or you're just trying to get by'), DiFranco is framing her words in unexpected settings, such as the flat-out funk of 'In The Way,' the piano-propelled jazz of 'O My My,' and the bluesy moan of 'Icarus,' to mention a few. I'm not saying that I would prefer if she put her musical evolution on hold, I just hope that she always puts a song such as 'Slide' on her discs to let us know that she hasn't forgotten why we listened to her in the first place.
The evolution of Dar Williams's sound is every bit as fascinating as DiFranco's. Like DiFranco, Williams has her roots in contemporary folk music and over the course of five studio albums Williams has moved in a more slick and commercial direction. Wisely, she has retained certain aspects of her previous discs, such as a sensational sense of musical humor, on her new album The Beauty of The Rain (Razor & Tie). 'I Saw A Bird Fly Away' and 'Your Soul Your Fire,' will delight Williams' fans, even though they lack some of the energy and originality of 'I Won't Be Your Yoko Ono,' 'Party Generation,' 'Teenagers, Kick Our Butts,' 'The Christians And The Pagans,' 'As Cool As I Am' or 'The Babysitter's Here,' they are nevertheless a delight. As for Williams's gift for folk/ pop gems, 'Farewell To The Old Me,' 'The World's Not Falling Apart,' and 'Closer To Me' sparkle the brightest. Her cover of The Band's 'Whispering Pines' (featuring Alison Krauss and Cliff Eberhardt), recorded for her husband Michael, is simply stunning.
It's been seven years since Rosanne Cash's eighth album 10 Song Demo was released. As she was preparing to record the follow-up two things occurred that slowed the progress. First, she became pregnant and then she developed a polyp that affected her voice for a couple of years. The good new is that her voice has returned and we are fortunate enough to have her long-awaited brilliant new album Rules Of Travel (Capitol) in our possession. The contributions of four guest vocalists—Sheryl Crow, Steve Earle, Johnny Cash and Teddy Thompson—enhance these remarkable songs, ranking them among Cash's finest. Crow joins Cash on the beautiful pop of 'Beautiful Pain,' Earle completes the dialogue on 'I'll Change For You,' Cash's father Johnny is, as her husband John Leventhal suggested, the right counterpart on 'September When It Comes,' and Thompson, a musical progeny like Cash, raises up 'Three Steps Down.' Cash also turns her unique perspective on to the subjects of aging ('44 Stories'), dabbles in electric country ('Closer Than I Appear'), and appropriately revives 10 Song Demo's 'Western Wall,' to mention a few.
Many people first heard Lisa Germano's name (and fiddle playing) when she was the violinist in John Mellencamp's band during the mid-to-late 1980s. As a solo artist, Germano took a more experimental path, particularly on the four dark and moody albums she released on the 4AD label during the nineties. Lullaby For Liquid Pig (Ineffable/ iMusic) doesn't stray from the path as Germano addresses such complex issues as alcohol abuse and battling inner demons. Musical guests include Neil Finn (with whom Germano has performed live and on CD as part of his band), Wendy Melvoin and Johnny Marr. Difficult and disturbing, but worth the experience, especially on the songs 'Nobody's Playing,' 'Pearls,' 'Candy,' 'It's Party Time,' and 'Into The Night.'
Released in 2001, The Well (Music Force Media Group), is the first studio album in nearly 10 years by the underrated Jennifer Warnes. In her 35th year as a recording artist, Warnes remains best-known for her vocals on the Oscar-winning '80s theme songs to An Officer and A Gentleman and Dirty Dancing. Her devoted fans also know the diversity of her work —from appearing on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour to her gig as backing vocalist for Leonard Cohen and the subsequently acclaimed album Famous Blue Raincoat, on which Warnes covers the songs of Cohen. I actually learned about The Well in a roundabout way. Patty Morabito, a Chicago-based cabaret performer, does a glorious version of the song 'Prairie Melancholy' (one of the Warnes originals on The Well) on her debut CD The Delicate Hour. As with most of her other albums, Warnes performs her own (co-)compositions and her interpretations of songs by others, including Billy Joel's 'And So It Goes,' 'Invitation To The Blues' by Tom Waits and Arlo Guthrie's 'Patriot's Dream,' and it is essential listening.
The newest arrival in this group, Susan Tedeschi received a Best New Artist Grammy nomination for her debut album a few years back. On her new CD Wait For Me (Tone-Cool/Artemis), Tedeschi polishes up her young Bonnie Raitt blue-eyed blues sound. She returns as an impressive songwriter on songs such as the gorgeous piano ballad 'Wrapped In The Arms Of Another,' the funky blues of ''Til I Found You,' the electric blues of 'The Feeling Music Brings' (co-written by husband Derek Trucks), and the near-gospel of 'In The Garden.' Tedeschi is also a respectful interpreter of other people's songs as you can hear on her covers of Dylan's 'Don't Think Twice, It's All Right' and Paul Pena's 'Gonna Move.'
A fixture on the contemporary folk scene for nearly 20 years, Christine Lavin's songs have been covered by openly gay cabaret artist D. C. Anderson, The Gay Men's Chorus of Washington, D.C., and Andrea Marcovicci, to name a few. Like Cheryl Wheeler, Lavin has a gift for mixing the humorous and the serious in her work and I Was In Love With A Difficult Man (Redwing) is further proof. Whether she's name-checking Dame Edna on 'Strangers Talk To Me,' admiring a long-standing relationship on 'Jack & Wanda,' making us hungry on 'Sunday Breakfast With Christine (and Ervin),' conjuring an older Ani DiFranco on 'Making Friends With My Grey Hair' (you'll have to listen to it to hear what I mean), or paying tribute to 9/11 firefighters on 'Firehouse,' Lavin's aim is true and her focus is sharp enough to cut glass, make you laugh, cry or nod your head in agreement.
