Rosie Flores - Single Rose

Rosie Flores took a little Texas with her to Nashville and has been recording what they call "alt-country" or "Americana" for several years. But what she sings is country- western, the real stuff, and she should be considered up there with Loretta and Patsy and the honky-tonk queen, Wanda Jackson. Rosie is a vibrant little ball of fire who performs with all the sincere affection for her music and her audience that draws in a listener and makes them a part of her songs.

I've been listening to Rosie Flores sing for several years now. I've heard her sing Webb Pierce songs, and Johnny Cash songs, and cheatin' songs and duets with some of my favorite singers, all on scattered compilations and tribute discs and other guys' CDs. This is the first time I've listened to one of Rosie's own CDs, a live performance, and I can hear for myself why so many folks go out of their way to sing with her.

Combining good humor, some fine guitar playing, and her winsome Texas soprano voice, Rosie just plain entertains from the get-go on "Single Rose." She's a songwriting dynamo, presenting nine of her own compositions plus three she co- wrote; there are only two tracks she didn't have a hand in creating, including a great cover of the Ricky Skaggs hit, "Country Boy (Girl)." From the nostalgic Palamino Days (a salute to the lost and greatly lamented nightclub in West Hollywood where much of the alt-country movement began) to the plaintive Bandera Highway (a memory of her Texas homeland), Rosie shows us a little of herself with every song.

I don't know why Rosie isn't performing at the Opry and winning CMAs and ACMs. Another flaw in the whole system to bemoan. At least there is Americana to acknowledge this bright, fun, and talented real country girl.