When I listen to a new artist, I insert the CD and will listen to it four to five times, maybe even six times. Sometimes it just takes that long to get into the groove of what the artist is trying to project. Not this time. Ms. Young’s songs are refreshing and all her own. The arrangements are all impeccably designed and come together to create a beautiful rendition of what was originally born in her head. Each track is carefully laid out to create a mosaic of songs about love, love lost, fantasy, tragedy , spirituality, and hope, all of which we as listeners, have felt at some point in our lives. She connects with us. This is a very successful debut recording by this young artist from Rhinebeck, NY.
The musicians she has recruited for this venture are all masters at their respective instruments. For instance on Bethany’s Garden, Mike Demicco’s guitar adds not just his talent for guitar but also compliments and adds a bluesy feel to the drama of the lyrics in the desperation of the protagonist’s search for the wild roses that bloom forever in Bethany’s Garden. That’s not all though. Rachel Handman on violin takes it to a higher level of drama and ties everything together. You can feel the desperation, the anguish, and the torture of what our hero has gone through on her journey with the wailing violin in the not so distant background. Ms. Young’s voice shows a lot of range and I don’t mean just in octaves. The manner in which she almost whispers the lyrics help us to want to find out what happens to our hero. I love a song that tells a good story and this one does that. We care about the character in this story and it’s the lyrics and the way they are delivered that enables that to happen. It all works.
The fifth track is a jewel called The Wire. It’s a little tune about leaving your comfort zone, what ever that happens to be, and walk The Wire. No safety nets, simply putting one foot in front of the other to accomplish what ever it is you are trying to accomplish. No one is making her walk the wire; no one is pointing a gun to her head as she puts it in the song. She’s doing what she has to do. It’s another song about moving forward and not looking back, no matter what lies in the path ahead. It’s a song of hope and fear and overcoming said fear. Again, like in Bethany’s Garden, the song is beautifully arranged and produced. Mr. Demicco’s guitar is there in all of its glory and again gives the song a very bluesy feel to a song, ironically enough, about hope. On this particular tune Scott Petito’s talent on the Hammond organ only adds to the flavor of the song.
Finally, on Into the Wilderness, we get another message of hope but more on a spiritual plane than one from experience. I guess you’d say our experiences are extremely closely related to our spiritual growth. This song is about that.
One foot in front of the other, one day at a time
I can see the reason but there’s no rhyme.
No turning back from the journey, now that it’s begun
Oh God, what have I done?
Walking into the wilderness
No path ahead I can see
Walking into the wilderness
Trusting you to guide me.
I believe this to be a song about recovery. Recovery from what life throws at us and using our faith to carry us through these experiences. I’m not a very religious person, but this song did touch me spiritually. In that respect, it is probably my favorite tune on the record. I love the lyrics but mostly I love the simplicity of the words and Ms. Young’s delivery of them. We are reeled into the song by a profound and jazzy Latin beat you can’t help but tap your foot too. Phil Russo adds his expert saxophone talent to this tune adding to the complexity of the arrangement. Of course Mr. Demicco is there with his guitar along with Mr. Petito on the Hammond, and Peter O’Brien on drums. This is a fine and carefully arranged tune and I was surprised, but adored the abrupt ending to it. It all fit.
Overall, I loved this record. There are nine additional songs on this record and if space would have allowed, I certainly would have reviewed them and given them all excellent remarks. However, the three I chose to write about here all stood out to me. If I had to, I would compare Cathy Young to someone like Mary Chapin Carpenter or Nicolette Larson, but only if I absolutely had too. My belief is Cathy Young can stand on- her- own.
Reviewed By Rod Ames
