Album Review by EDF
Every now and then an album comes along and no matter what you do to describe it, it never is a true reflection on how good the product is. This is one of those albums. At best, to label it as folk might be a bit unfair but the quality here is at best just as good as anything from Joni Mitchell or Ireland’s Christy Moore. Where Christy would use a bodhran during his live performance, Tara’s instrument of choice is the West African djembe.
Starting off with the playful FAME AND MONEY, Tara makes her point that her name in lights and money might be more important than love but in the end these materialistic things cannot replace love. NAP is about finding your man in bed, taking a nap. Finding him like this, “the truest form of a man” is what Tara loves about him. EASTERN EUROPEAN GERMAN JEWISH INDIAN is a bluegrass tune about how your roots get mixed up through the generations but in the end you are just viewed as Caucasian.
BUS STOP is a humorous tale about waiting for the bus with something out of the ordinary occurring. SPIRITS WALKING OVER is an interesting statement about the state of the planet, “if the earth were my lover”. EGGS N BACON is about “making breakfast in the sun” with the family and it sounds so good you’d wish you were there. YA TA HEY is all about taking a long coach ride and having a conversation or is a confession from one of its passengers.
Lyrically, Tara has a great way of describing various emotions or events to such an extent that if you were to close your eyes while listening to this album, you would almost be transported to another place. What also helps is Tara’s soulful voice, filled with joy and emotion. Some of the subject matters feel like they are close to her heart while others songs are just pure storytelling and in the hands of the right artist and here, it is, is a joy to experience. Singing harmony on a number of tracks is her older sister Wendy and also Brian Potts, who joins Tara on her live performances. This album is a clear indication on to how good the live shows are.
