LITTLE ROCK — Jessica Lea Mayfield
Tell MeNonesuchA
Jessica Lea Mayfield is a ball of contradictions: a young old soul, brooding yet quirky, passionate yet distant, folksy yet experimental. Those contradictions serve her well on her third solo album and the second to be produced by Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys.
There is not a weak track on the album, which begins with the very Nancy Sinatra-esque “I’ll Be the One You Want Someday.” Mayfield’s aching, twangy voice sounds mature well beyond her 21 years, like a budding Neko Case. The theme throughout is love - but not the treacly, handholding, blissed-out variety. This is love undone, at its most despairing. Yet Mayfield has a knack for turning sad rawness into something utterly captivating, like melancholy pop.
Mayfield is bluesy, but not in the predictable sense; offbeat without veering into the unpalatable eccentricity. She gets a big boost from Auerbach, who provides fuzzy chords and tortured riffs - the perfect distortion to her vocals.
“You should run far from the wrong I am doing,” she warns on “Trouble.” We believe her, but can’t let go. Listen to “Our Hearts Are Wrong” and try not to feel her tug, even as, contradictorily, she’s trying to push away.
- JENNIFER GODWIN
Wanda Jackson
The Party Ain’t OverThird Man/NonesuchA-
How cool to hear a new set of songs by the great WandaJackson, the pioneering rockabilly singer and “bad girl” who toured with Elvis and hit the charts with “Let’s Have a Party” in 1960. Now 73, Jackson teams with producer Jack White, who brought the best out of Loretta Lynn on 2004’s Van Lear Rose.
An eclectic song choice, inspired and often raw instrumentation, and Jackson’s vitality make for fascinating listening. “Shakin’ All Over” is a shaky opener; the arrangement isn’t in balance with the singer. But wait until you hear her cover of Amy Winehouse’s “You Know I’m No Good.” It’s sexy, horn-driven and gets a killer vocal.
Bob Dylan pitched “Thunder on the Mountain” to Jackson and she navigates and integrates the song’s sense of gospel righteousness with the desire for the world’s treasures and pleasures. She changes a word or two, drops one phrase to make it hers. She inhabits this tune so completely it is superior to Dylan’s version.
There’s also a fun take on the Andrews Sisters’ “Rum and Coca-Cola,” the gospel classic “Dust on the Bible” and a charming version of Jimmie Rodgers’ “Blue Yodel No. 9.”
Heartfelt, soulful. This is one party we hope never ends.
- ELLIS WIDNERShinedown The Sound ofMadness (Deluxe edition) AtlanticB+
It is no surprise in our hyper-digital age that bands reach across multiple platforms. Shinedown is one of the latest groups to offer up an old album repackaged with bonus tracks, and a DVD of videos and live concert footage.
But let’s put the visuals aside and just listen to the Florida hard rock band’s trove of B-sides, alternate versions and acoustic takes. Among the bonus material, we get a transcendent (and string-filled) acoustic version of “Second Chance” as well as a new song, “Diamond Eyes,” which is heavy on the loud and propulsive licks. Front man Brent Smith demonstrates his vocal chops on “Her Name Is Alice” and “The Crow & the Butterfly.” These bonus tracks, coupled with all of the songs from the band’s third album, deserve the “deluxe” classification. Shinedown, with this solid effort, begins its ascent into the upper echelon of hard rockers.
- JENNIFER GODWINCarrie Elkin Call It My GardenRed HouseB-
Only on one song here, “Shots Rang Out,” does Carrie Elkin, a folk singer-songwriter, really connect. The stark song paints, with a few lines, the horrible scene of a mother being gunned down.
Elsewhere, Elkin, who has a voice that isn’t pretty but is raw and powerful in all the right ways, dances around subjects with poetry-lite lyrics that are overwrought and over-thought. Work that’s more direct - less hothouse coffeehouse - would make Elkin somebody to really recommend.
- WERNER TRIESCHMANN
Gregg Allman
Low CountryBlues RounderB+
It’s fascinating how Gregg Allman, who found indelible fame as part of the Allman Brothers Band, seems to manage only modest solo efforts (or worse; remember Allman and Woman?).
Some 14 years after his last one, Allman finally gets a solo album that deservesattention and respect. Working with producer T Bone Burnett has helped Allman focus his soulful blues voice on not-so-well-known tunes by blues greats Bobby “Blue” Bland, B.B. King, Magic Sam, Junior Wells and others. The sound is pretty full, with horns, guitars and supporting vocalists. Guests include Mac Rebennack (Dr. John) and Doyle Bramhall II.
High points include a stunning, searing take on Bland’s “Blind Man,” the infectious and roiling take on Otis Rush’s “My Love Is Your Love” and a gritty “Checking on My Baby” (Otis Rush),on which Allman sounds almost youthful. His original (with Warren Hayes) “Just Another Rider” seems out of place.
Not a great album, but a big step in the right direction.
- ELLIS WIDNER
Style, Pages 45 on 02/20/2011