Eden Brent hails from Greenville, MS, a place steeped in the Delta blues, but she's only 300 miles from New Orleans, and it's that city's carefree rhythms and happy-go-lucky attitude that informs the music on
Brent's second album.
Brent is a piano player with an impressive groove anchored by a strong rhythmic left hand and a playful way with the high end of the keyboard. Her vocals are just as strong, with a smoky, sultry feel that often brings to mind
Janis Joplin, but a mellower
Joplin who doesn't have to strain for the high notes or growl to get her point across. She's also a first-class songwriter, using the blues as a jumping-off place for her ironic musings on the familiar subjects of good times and no-good men. She cut this album in New Orleans and is joined by some remarkable players, including ex-
Meter George Porter on bass, producer
Colin Linden on guitar, and ace Americana drummer
Bryan Owings. Together they romp through a varied program that includes "Someone to Love," a funky you-done-me-wrong rhumba driven by
Brent's rolling New Orleans piano and a vocal that dismisses her ex with an offhand elegance;
Colin Linden's "Later Than You Think," given a jazzy ragtime treatment with
Brent's earthy left hand and
Linden's guitar trading solos before she takes off on her own mellow excursion; "If I Can't," a throwback to the '20s played by
Brent and
Linden with a funky, ragged charm; and a rousing juke-joint take on her own "Let's Boogie-Woogie," a showcase for her impressive piano skills. ~ j. poet