| Jillbilly - Jill King | |
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Reviewed by Kathy Coleman
It's always nice to find a singer who can embrace the traditional sounds of country music, the hillbilly sound of the backwoods Appalachians, the simple quality that makes country music COUNTRY, while at the same time presenting it with a fresh, modern, and wholly contemporary sound.
Jill King has all of that wrapped up with a crisp, clear soprano voice which is all her own. She obviously embraces country legends in her approach to her music, but she is completely unique and new. She admires but does not imitate. Straight off the top, with the opening track "98.6 Degrees," Jill shows she knows how to honky-tonk. "It's Me Again" is a classic minor-key swing tune that is a terrific platform for her crystalline voice.
This Alabama native (born and raised in the tiny town of Arab) knows how to belt out a real country song. Every track on this debut CD is 100% genuine, strong country music. The music is tremendous; the lyrics are superb. There are clever word plays melded to perfection with a contemporary honky-tonk swing that is immediately likeable. This is great dance hall music. You just want to get out on the floor when listening to "Down 'N' Out," or the wicked swinging "After All." "Hand Me Down Heartache" has a very modern country feel, definitely a single if country radio were smart enough to play this very classy country lady.
The sweet finale to the disc is the heartstring-plucking "Down The Fields To Hay," the near-mandatory modern country lament to the passing of the country farmer, as well as the country itself.
It's my sincere hope that Jill King continues on exactly the way she's started here. This is quite easily one of the finest debut albums I've heard. She knows how country music should sound, and she has a voice that is as real as it gets. It's pure and beautiful whether singing the dance songs or the lovely ballads such as "The Part I Don't Understand" or "Not Knowing Anymore."
It's nice to hear the "real deal" in a package suitable for "mainstream." The two shouldn't be mutually exclusive. Jill King has it all.
Song List:
Album cover and sound clips courtesy of Blue Diamond Records.
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