This disc sure may catch a listener off guard with its wonderful songwriting (ten of 11 are written by
Christy McWilson) and hard hitting instrumental work. You may have never heard of
McWilson before, nor heard any buzz about her. But one first listen of the CD, you will put the disc in your changer and instantly be impacted by the country sounding "The Lucky One," which startles with it's beautiful clear soaring voice and a subtle rocking beat. This is followed by the relentless "Little Red Hen," with pounding drum work of
Don Heffington relentlessly pushing it along. The disc continues to surprise and delight with its changing rhythms, the solid and tight band closely following the leads of
McWilson's plaintive voice that reflects the emotion of the lyrics. This is an excellent band that stays with her with every twist;
Rick Shea does his usual outstanding job on a variety of instruments, as do
Peter Buck and
Greg Leisz. The accordion work of
Chris Gaffney adds a subtle undercurrent to the sound. Then congratulations must go to
Dave Alvin and the production work he did here, keeping the whole lot vibrant and alive. You will certainly look forward to a lot more from this roots rocker.