|
"You'll
need to put some clothes on. It's pretty cold over there,"
was my remark to Dana Fuchs when I saw her at the NEMO
music festival at the beginning of October. I was referring to
her upcoming trip to Helsinki, Finland and to her stage costume,
which is generally on the revealing side - and she agreed that
some cover up would probably be required in order to stave of
pneumonia.
Standing
six-foot-plus tall, Dana is a commanding presence on stage even
before she opens her mouth. When she does, the voice she delivers
is as powerful as any of the greats, a bluesy, earthy rocking
delivery that just keeps on going. Indeed, it's not uncommon for
her gigs - at venues as diverse as BB King's Blues Club, The Mercury
Lounge and the Red Lion - to last a couple of hours.
Originally
from Florida, Dana grew up on the blues and on gospel music, influences
which she kept when she moved to New York City in her late teens.
Joining forces with her co-writer/guitarist Jon Diamond, they
formed the Dana Fuchs Band and hit the blues club scene. More
recently, she was the voice of Janis Joplin in the Off Broadway
hit Love Janis.
It
was while she was on the blues circuit that Dana began to write
her own songs, drawing on a life that has clearly seen some dark
times, and the result is her debut CD Lonely for a Lifetime
which has been picked up by Boston-based indie label Q&W Records.
To find out where Dana's playing out next, visit www.danafuchs.com.
~~~~~
 On
her recently-released sophomore CD Skintalk, Brooklynite Martha
Redbone continues to explore social and political issues close
to her heart and heritage - as a Native American - setting her
lyrics and pure-as-honey voice to a musical backdrop of soul and
funk that reminds one of classic works such as Marvin Gaye's What's
Going On? as well as the sounds of George Clinton and Funkadelic.
On
stage last week at Joe's Pub in NYC for her CD release gig - a
performance that was introduced and blessed by Dennis Banks, Founder
of the American Indian Movement - the funk was indeed out in force,
in the form of an inspiring 11-piece backing band, many of which
also performed on the album.
As
with her debut CD Home of the Brave, all of the new songs were
co-written by Martha with her longtime keyboard player/producer
Aaron Whitby. With standout tracks like "Talk About It,"
"Stick Wit Me" and "Future Street" it's a
fine follow-up to a debut that's been on high rotation on my iPod
for some time. Find out more at www.martharedbone.com.
Buy
Martha's CDs, including Skintalk
at the WOMANROCK MusicShop.
~~~~~
 It
was a bit of a surprise to me when Butterfly Boucher introduced
herself on stage at the Mercury Lounge the other week, for I learned
that her name is not pronounced boo-shay as I had presumed,
but bow-cher (with a hard ch). That wasn't the only surprise
though, as I soon determined that the photos of her on her debut
major label CD Flutterby don't do her justice. With a smile
like that of Cameron Diaz, she's as pretty as hell.
Pretty
or not, I was already a fan, having picked up the CD after reading
about her and her unique musical upbringing in the August
issue of WOMANROCK. It's a CD full of pop music at its best
- superb vocals mixed with a lush production and catchy songs
that linger in one's mind.
Playing
live, thanks to a full band, a laptop, and her own sound engineer,
the CD sound was reproduced in full, and Butterfly's style shone
through as she bantered light-heartedly with the audience between
songs, and then gyrated as she let rip with on guitar in a manner
that I remember fondly from Nancy Wilson of Heart. Not to be missed
on disc or live, check out Butterfly at www.butterflyboucher.com.
Photo
of Dana Fuchs courtesy of www.mebeeb.com.
Pete
Harris founded Harris Radio as a response to the music
being played on corporate-controlled mainstream radio. He is also
a partner in WOMANROCK. Check out Scene and Heard artists on www.harrisradio.com.
©
1999-2004. WOMANROCK.com. All Rights Reserved.
|
