Julie Powell, Heart of a Woman (Solponticello Records, 2003)
Julie Powell's official bio makes reference to "playing guitar in smoky bars," which is a perfect image for the music on Heart of a Woman. This is the kind of music that makes you think of drinking beer with a whiskey chaser in one of those bars where even the pool table goes quiet when the local talent takes the minuscule stage at the back, where the red and blue lights cast a tinge on the smoke that hangs in the air, and where somehow the blend of smoke and sweat and alcohol and a pair of loud amps adds up, in spite of itself, to an impressive musical experience.
I played this CD with no knowledge whatsoever about who Julie Powell is, what genre music she performs, or even what she looks like. The short, instrumental "Intro" had me thinking that this was an ethnic-music disc -- there is something vaguely "Native American" about the way the Intro sounds -- but that air is dispelled almost immediately when the actual songs begin, with the second track, "Over My Head." At that point we're straight into the general sound of the disc, a blend of blues, country, and slow, Southern balladry. It's pretty affecting.
Powell has a thick and sultry alto voice, and she delivers her lyrics with just the right amount of "Southern drawl." She also has the more elusive quality of singing with the conviction of her lyrics; even in the three traditional hymns or spirituals on the disc, Powell effectively makes them "her own." It doesn't matter, really, if you are simpatico with the message; what's important is that Powell convinces that she believes what she is singing.
There are two grounds on which I'd criticize this record. Most obviously, it's very short -- there is a little more than half-an-hour's listening here. But that's probably just as well, because the record's major weakness is that there is almost no variation of tempo or sound here. All the songs are of the same speed -- slow and sultry -- which somewhat lessens the impact of the last couple of tracks, once you get to them, and would likely doom any additional songs were the CD to go on longer than it does. I suspect that my criticisms cancel each other out, to a certain degree.
I'm not sure how much play this CD will get in my home, since this particular genre of music isn't usually my cup of tea. Still, on the basis of this CD, I'd like to hear more of Julie Powell.
Julie Powell has a Web site here.
