This 2014 album was the third release from Auburn. At the time singer and songwriter Liz Lenten had been working with Gretchen Peters, who introduced her to producer Thomm Jutz, an award-winning bluegrass player, singer songwriter, producer, arranger, and engineer. Thomm liked the material Liz was working on and invited her to Nashville to work with him and his team of Grammy winning musicians – Mark Fain on Bass (Ry Cooder, Ricky Skaggs), Lyn Williams (Wildflowers, Del McEnroy) and amazing harmony singer Britt Savage (Garth Brooks, Crystal Gayle) plus Dolly’s steel player Terry Crisp and Gretchen’s piano playing husband Barry Walsh. Needless to say, this moved her music in a different direction as it was authentic country, recorded with musicians who have been playing these styles all their lives.
Liz either wrote or co-wrote all the songs, with four being co-written with her normal contributor Mark Gustavina, who has been there since the very first line-up of the band. This represented in quite a shift for Auburn as while they were still a live act, this time it was just Liz on vocals and no-one else from the touring band involved. In some ways this is a step back in time as this way of working was not uncommon in the Sixties and Seventies. Liz’s voice is perfect for the music at hand, with accompaniment often kept quite sparse, with drums often being played by brushes and the bass just providing enough emphasis, allowing Thomm (guitars), Barry (piano) and especially Terry (pedal steel) to fill the gaps. One would never imagine that the album was written in the UK, and that the singer was English as opposed to American, as this feels wholly authentic and incredibly powerful. This is country and western with real soul, edge, and bite, telling stories that compels the listener to play close attention and be involved.
Rating: 8/10
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Track list:
1. Sitia Bay
2. Let’s Start Over
3. Hurting
4. Crazy People
5. Pride Is a Thief
6. Butterfly
7. Maybe Tonight
8. Full to the Brim
9. I Would Fall Down
10. Leaving Day
11. If You Knew
12. I’m Lost
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Links:
https://www.auburn.org.uk/
https://www.scarletmedia.co.uk/scarlet-records
