Dulcie Taylor, Mirrors and Windows (Black Iris 2004)
Dulcie Taylor has a few surprises up her sleeve. Mirrors and Windows, her second release on Black Iris, starts like a fairly typical singer-songwriter album of contemporary folk music -- albeit a very good one. "Blackberry Winter," the opening track, is one of those songs about a relationship going bad but for which a small glimmer of hope remains. The jangly electric guitar and very subtle pedal steel accents complement Taylor's lightly drawled vocals.
But with the next two tracks, what started out as a middle-of-the-road folk disc moves into more rarified territory. "Maybe" is steamy country soul, with a solid drum-and-bass groove, chunking rhythm guitar and soaring B3 organ, and some nifty lyrical turns: "Maybe the truth lies somewhere between/the light of the day and the shadow of a dream." And on "Seaboard Train" Taylor takes up the blues harp for a hot slab of loping gospel blues, backed by a sweet soulful vocal trio and some hair-raising slide guitar from Duke Levine.
It's still very folky -- by that, I mean the emphasis is on the lyrics and the story they have to tell, rather than on either the emotion of gospel or the sensuality of the blues. But with these two tracks at least, Taylor shows why she won a Wammie (Wasington Area Music Award) in 2003 for her previous disc, Diamond & Glass, as best contemporary folk recording.
The rest of the disc doesn't quite rise to those heights again, but it's still a worthwhile listen, given the South Carolina native's lovely vocal style and economic songwriting skills. "Ice Melts" is solid country-folk, a nice cross between Carter Family-style poignance and honky-tonk heartbreak -- although the tinkling piano is a little too polite and restrained. "Out of My Blood," "Other Side of the Bed" and "Miracle" are straightforward contemporary folk, portraits of small-town, blue-collar and settled family life.
The moving "Woman I Used to Be" finds the protagonist facing herself in the mirror and singing a haunting song about the loss of innocence. "Pillow Like a Stone" finds Taylor trying out some folk-rock trappings that don't fit all that comfortably.
But the final track, "Love Like Yours & Mine," once again rises above the pack. With Taylor on dulcimer, backed by clattering percussion and accordion, this gospel-like love song pays tribute to the simple things -- friendship, love, the comforts of home and a hometown -- without descending into sentimentality.
At ten tracks, Mirrors and Windows is a comfortable length, part of what I'm seeing as a welcome trend away from filling all eighty minutes of a CD's capacity.
Dulcie Taylor has produced a fine album of contemporary folk music that at times transcends its genre's limitations and enters a higher realm of music that's not so easily classifiable. It's a high-quality listening experience.
You can learn more at Dulcie Taylor's Web site.
