Americana meets God on new Vonnie Scott Album

March 7, 2008

Americana meets God on new Vonnie Scott album

Filed under: Acoustic, Adult Contemporary, Folk - Tags: Americana, Folk, God, Janis Joplin - hellhoundonmytrail @ 2:19 am

By Lucinda Coyne

Artist: Vonnie Scott

Title: Beckon Call

Grade: B+

Web: http://www.scottiemusic.com

Vonnie Scott has found God - and she wants to make sure that you know it. Blessed with a soulful, aching voice, Scott is almost doesn't need any instruments; her singing alone could've carried this record. You will find essentially two kinds of songs on this CD: relaxing, introspective folk-ish numbers and energetic Americana, the best of which are "The Well" and "Another Rainy Day." Neither approach is better than the other; Scott nails them both down with the skill of a seasoned veteran.

The title cut opens slowly, suggesting a midtempo number until Scott hits the chorus, and her passionate singing blows away any chance of this being anything less than vibrant soft rock. She reminds me of Janis Joplin here, but while Joplin would veer out of control and explode in histrionics, Scott is remarkably disciplined. The songs on Beckon Call deal with love, life, and God, all written with honesty and warmth. If you thought that "real" artists were rare in these days of corporate smack, perhaps they're just buried treasure like Scott.