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Paulette Carlson -
It's About Time
By Kenny Hart
Quote: "...it's refreshing to
hear Ms. Carlson's smoky, emotive voice again; It's a blast from
the past that is perfectly in tune with the present."
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Paulette Carlson is a woman with a
mission--one that brought her out of her retirement, not out of
desire as much as what she considered to be her responsibility
to get her message out: She wants to thank the men and women who
served in Vietnam. In the fall of 2004 Carlson wrote a song
inspired by her brother Gary, and the many other Vietnam vets
she had known, called "Thank You Vets". She says, "'Thank You
Vets' just wrote itself in a matter of 10 minutes, and I knew
after I had written it that I would be going back to work. 'Thank You Vets' is a song that needs to be heard and I felt a
great responsibility to this piece of music. I could not just
put it on the shelf with the other songs I had written."
>From the first note, it was clear her "retirement" didn't
diminish her chops; her distinctive voice that took the
legendary band Highway 101 to the top of the charts, winning ACM
and CMA awards in 1988 and 1989, is as good as ever. Her newest
project, It's About Time, is pure country. With
pop-oriented country so prevalent in what we are hearing on the
radio today, Carlson's traditional sound is a refreshing change. And it's refreshing to hear her smoky, emotive voice again; It's
a blast from the past that is perfectly in tune with the
present. She's also a formidable songwriter (her "Bed You Made
For Me" was Highway 101's first hit single). She penned all but
two of the tracks on this record, and true to tradition, behind
each song, there is a story.
While every song on this album is high-quality in both writing
and production , "That Old Glass Case" -- my pick hit -- is
easily on par with Dolly Parton's "Coat Of Many Colors". Both
songs use the technique of focusing on a central image and
building the story around it, a memorable and effective means of
catching and holding the listener's attention. Then again, this
is one of those records that could easily have multiple hits,
and every listener will have their own favorite cuts. It's
hard to imagine anyone not ripping all 12 tracks to their
favorite media player. It's About Time earns a place on my shelf
in the "All-time Favorites" section.
CLICK HERE for more about Paulette or to buy this CD |
