Can't Find No Heaven

Alice Stuart

Burnside
www.burnsiderecords.com

review by Robert Horn

Alice Stuart's latest CD is pretty special in a lot of ways. Her statement inside about being a song interpreter is worth pondering. She says it's a craft not given enough respect, and she has a point. It's also worth pointing out that in addition to being a good song interpretor, she is also a good singer, guitar player, and song writer.

Her style is a little Bonnie Raittish, but that is a real oversimplification. She has a slight folk edge to real soulful blues. The songs she wrote on this CD are the best on the CD, and that is recognizing that she also included songs like "Big Boss Man", and "Drop Down Daddy" which was written by the legendary Fred McDowell. This as well as other songs had lyrics added now by Alice, and it made the songs take on a flavor of hers that is pretty nice. She wrote most of the music here, and it is impressive. I especially liked "Blues In The Bottle", "I Ruined Your Life", and "The Man's So Good".

All the lyrics are contained on paper inside the CD, and when you buy it and listen to it you will be able to read along. I highly recommend that you go do that right now.

Seattle is lucky to have this talent here and in nightspots within driving distance of most everyone reading this. Check out the Calendar of the Bluesletter to see where to go catch her on stage.

There are some other people on here in addtion to Alice. On vocals with her on "The Man Is So Good" is Duffy Bishop. Fred Chalenor is on bass, Kevin Cook is on drums, Paul DeLay is on harmonica, Louis Pain is on the B3 organ, Terry Robb is on acoustic slide guitar on 2 songs and electric bass on another, Janice Scroggins on piano... with a band like that backing you up it's hard to go wrong anyway. Add to that the talent of Alice Stuart and you have a CD that can't fail to be really really good.