Female Singer/Songwriter Thread

[wdogg40]

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Wdogg. I wish you did Tori now. What albums do you think are the most accessible to those who are not familiar with her work?

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I would definitely recommend Little Earthquakes and Scarlett's Walk. Scarlett's walk had A Sorta Fairytale which was her biggest hit to date. Anything live or any of her covers are magnificent.

A very haunting and emotionally raw version of a song that started a music revolution. Smells Like Teen Spirit

[Dominic]

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Wdogg. I wish you did Tori now. What albums do you think are the most accessible to those who are not familiar with her work?

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I would definitely recommend Little Earthquakes and Scarlett's Walk. Scarlett's walk had A Sorta Fairytale which was her biggest hit to date. Anything live or any of her covers are magnificent.

A very haunting and emotionally raw version of a song that started a music revolution. Smells Like Teen Spirit

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I've got Tori Amos' first four albums and think they are all excellent...I kinda lost track of her and her music, but I'm glad to see she's still going strong. And she's one of the best concerts I've ever seen.

[wdogg40]

I never got to comment about Fiona Apple but I have to agree that she is as well a phenomenal artist and one of the few people whose cd I can buy without hearing any of it beforehand and love the entire thing.

Fiona has the same spell over me as Tori does. As do most other female artists listed in this thread.

When I first heard/saw Criminal I couldn't believe it was done by someone so young (even though she was older than me). Tidal was an excellent album and I Shadow Boxer may still be my favorite song of hers. Each album progressed in maturity and are some of the most solid albums out there.

It was fun to see some of her humorous side with the Galifianakis Not About Love video. There is not a song of hers that I haven't liked yet.

[Kimbell175113]

dogg and others,

did you ever hear the leaked, Brion-produced version of Extraordinary Machine? I liked it a lot, and it took me a long time to get used to the eventual final album because it was so different. Now I've decided that some of the songs were better, some were worse, but it's interesting to hear both and see the evolution.

[wdogg40]

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dogg and others,

did you ever hear the leaked, Brion-produced version of Extraordinary Machine? I liked it a lot, and it took me a long time to get used to the eventual final album because it was so different. Now I've decided that some of the songs were better, some were worse, but it's interesting to hear both and see the evolution.

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I heard it only after I had the re-release. I liked both just fine there wasn't a whole lot to change my perspective of the songs. I did like more emphasis on the strings in the first one, but you can tell the re-release has a little more energy and is a little less raw. I think the first version of O Sailor is a little too slow figuring the later one was slow as well.

I think in hindsight it was a wise choice to wait and release the 2nd version.

[wdogg40]

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Indigo Girls



Amy Ray and Emily Saliers of the Indigo Girls are an exceptional singer/songwriter duo. I wish that people would not feel the need to mention their sexual orientation every time, because their music is very good work. I am especially a fan of their older material, from Strange Fire to Swamp Ophelia. I personally own Nomads, Indians, Saints and Rites of Passage, and can recommend both as options for solid acoustic-based music.

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It is really unfortunate that they come with a label. They are very good and have great songs, but god forbid that if you are a male that enjoys the Indigo Girls you must be gay. There are probably a lot more people who would enjoy them if they could get over themselves.

I have had friends that have had Indigo Girls records that would make excuses why they had them if I asked them about it thinking that I was going to make fun of them, when all I wanted to do was ask them if it was good or not.

[hanimal]

Yeah I touched on the leaked version on my post.

So I downloaded that version thinking that that was the actual album. When I bought the CD and listened to it, I was WTF for awhile.
I honestly think the leaked version is far superior to the official release.

There are some articles online about it and a particularly good one that compares track for track. But honestly the official version KILLS Not About Love and it is my favorite song on the bootleg version. It strips all the nuance and depth out of the song. Also, I feel that the vocals are better on some tracks on the bootleg version, notably on Oh Well her vocal kicks more ass whereas the studio release it's flatter.

Oh and it also kills Tymps. Tymps kicks ass on the bootleg with a very big, full orchestral sound going on whereas on the official it's more of a hip-hop beat. (Elizondo has produced hip-hop so it's expected.)

Everything on the official release sounds so compressed and smaller, some of the beats almost sound like midis. And the drums are worse. I want the lush orchestration and obscure instrumentation of Jon Brion dammit!

Honestly, the official release is still good. The lyrics are the same, the skeletons of the songs are there. I'll take the official version than no version. But I consider the bootleg the official and just listen to that.

[Kimbell175113]

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But honestly the official version KILLS Not About Love and it is my favorite song on the bootleg version. It strips all the nuance and depth out of the song.

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Yeah, this is why I thought of it after the NAL video was mentioned (I did read your original post, just forgot, sorry [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]). That song was sick, and the newer version is like a KidzBop cover in comparison. We seemed to notice the same things on the other songs, too, especially the anger in "Oh Well" that's missing on the Elizondo version.

I do like the new "O Sailor" better, though.

[Dominic]

Neko Case




Prpbably the "hippest" and most critically acclaimed of the moder chanteuses, Neko Case has a great career going as both a solo artist, with Her Boyfriends, and as a member of such great bands as The Corn Sisters, The Sadies, Maow, and - most popularly - The New Pornographers.

She combines great songwriting skill with a voice that easily swims between rock, country, folk and pop...once you hear Neko Case sing you will not soon forget her.

She can do straight girly pop with a band like Maow:

Ms. Leferve

Then with The New Pornographers, she goes back and forth between lead vocals and backing vocals with ease...

With the New Pornographers:

Letter From an Occupant

Your Daddy Don't Know

My Rights Vs. Yours

The Bleeding Heart Show (live) (you might know this one - it was used in a huge national commercial - most people know it as the "Hey La" song)

Compare this to her solo work, especially from her latest, Fox Confessor Brings The Flood. Her solo songs have a more country feel to them and her voice has a clean, clear beautiful lilt that is perfectly seductive:

Maybe Sparrow

Hold On, Hold On (live)

Live performance from Austin City Limits

I could go on and on...she is a remarkable talent and one everyone in The Lounge should get to know! Start with her solo albumsFox Confessor and Blacklisted, then check out her side projects like The New Pornographers' Twin Cinema.

[Rick Nebiolo]

Margo Timmons

In a post above Lounge guru Dom gave me the OK to go with Margo Timmons, primary singer and sometimes songwriter for the Cowboy Junkies. Her brother Michael writes most CJ music so I guess it’s in the blood.

What I like most about Margo and the Junkies is the timelessness of their music; it simply never gets dated. They also don’t have “skip over tracks”, important if you actually listen to some of your music on a CD player/stereo.

Their first album from 1990 was the acclaimed Trinity Sessions, recorded during a one-day recording session in an old church. On YouTube I found Misguided Angel and their cover of Sweet Jane used in the Natural Born Killers soundtrack.

The second album Caution Horses wasn’t as well received but it’s still among my favorites. This live version of Sun Comes Up, It’s Tuesday Morning isn’t quite as refined as the studio cut but is about as strong a song about a bittersweet end to a relationship that’s ever been written. “Cause Cheap Is How I Feel” is probably the best track on this CD but only available on the Amazon Windows Media Sampler.

From Lay It Down we have the beautiful Angel Mine and the sublime A Common Disaster.

Finding this live version of To Live Is To Fly is my reward for finding and verifying all these links.

Margo later joked about her “big hair” that can be seen in this 1989 SNL appearance and later on Austin City Limits.

The good thing about having two monitors is I can write this post on one while watching and listening to a performance like this on the other.

Enjoy I hope.

~ Rick