Emily Singleton: Reviews

It’s shaping up to be a long, cold winter, but singer-songwriter Emily Singleton has an even better excuse to cozy up to a roaring fire.

Backed by a capable crew of musicians, including Jim Hurst on mandolin, and Becky Buller on fiddle, Singleton tells scary stories and piles on the wintry atmosphere with her latest, Spirit on the Prowl.

A silvery, ethereal vocalist in the mold of folk-pop singers like Joni Mitchell and Alison Krauss, Singleton’s most gratifying influence is Jacqui McShea, of 60s-era British folk-rockers Pentangle.

That influence is most evident in “Sweet Becky at the Loom,” a traditional lyric set to Pete Sutherland’s breathtaking, British folk-style melody. The distinctive, modal character of traditional folk is also present in Singleton’s originals, “Shadow of a Mountain,” which tells a story that seems straight from the oral tradition, and “A Little Jaded,” with a decidedly more contemporary viewpoint.

Singleton proves equally adept at Irish folk in “Rise Up My Love”, a traditional melody with lyrics adapted by Singleton and her guitarist husband, Dave Higgs. Higgs’ bright pennywhistle, nimble guitar filigrees, and spare, orchestral strings underscore the Celtic feel.

Those same strings turn two drastically different tunes – Gordon Lightfoot’s “Song for a Winter’s Night” and the Stanley Brothers favorite “Little Maggie” – into stark, compelling chamber folk.

The traditional “Ain’t Gonna Work Tomorrow” benefits from old-timey instrumental backup and a bluesy vibe, while a folk-revival take on the Carter Family chestnut “Keep on the Sunny Side” gets a lift from a swinging bass line.

Singleton’s “Hobo Railway” is the most overtly bluegrass-style track, with a bone-chilling sketch of the eponymous hobo’s character: “He’d give you love / So he could take it / Then he’d leave / You on a whim.”

Singleton deserves credit for embracing the ethnic character that so many contemporary singers throw away when they interpret folk and traditional tunes. It’s enough to give a traditionalist hope – even with a long, cold winter ahead.

Although the album is graced with her lovely voice and the talents of excellent musicians, trying to fit it into a musical category might cause a little confusion among those who hold to a more strict definition of the term "bluegrass." Emily demonstrates her songwriting talents with six cuts including the title song. The purist may recognize songs like Ain’t Gonna Work Tomorrow, Keep On The Sunny Side and Little Maggie, but here they have been reassembled to the point of being new and fresh. In addition to most of the standard bluegrass instrumentation, there’s a smattering of other exotic instruments - viola, accordion, dulcimer. Overall this is a well-produced project. Give it a spin!

Emily Singleton has a Colorado connection. Her husband, Dave Higgs, used to live in the Denver area and was a DJ on KCFR on a Bluegrass show. Emily is a gifted songwriter and performer. This recording isn’t strictly Bluegrass by any means and overall could be categorized as "Progressive Acoustic" music. The talent and production are very good. There are 6 orginals of the 14 cuts. Some of the tunes are traditional, well-known tunes, but they are presented in a very unique way. I put some gold asterisks on the tunes that are particularly suited to Day Mix shows. For Cindy Reich – there is one tune that is translated from Gaelic, #6 "Rise Up My Love". Highly Recommended!

Born, raised, and reared on traditional music in middle Tennessee, Emily Singleton is now building a reputation as an eclectic adventurist and innovator. Emily Singleton's third album, "Spirit on the Prowl," follows her successful 2003 Bell Buckle disc ("Life in the Moment") that brought considerable attention to her genre-crossing approach that blends elements of bluegrass, Celtic, folk, blues and classical music. With a large body of original material, along with covers from Chris Kokesh, Gordon Lightfoot, A.P. Carter and traditional sources, "Spirit on the Prowl" is well-wrought and tastefully-rendered Americana. Elevating one's personal repertoire above mediocre singer-songwriter fare is every Emily Singleton's challenge. Folksingers could learn from her admirable efforts. Emily and the lean feminine harmonies (from her sister Teressa Parker, Jennifer Rinehart, Andrea Zonn, Becky Buller) are richly textured to be both earthy and somewhat ethereal. Although I wouldn't have minded additional vocal harmonies on a few more pieces mid-set (e.g. Hobo Railway), two parts work for most. The fullest, most robust vocals are discovered early in the set ("Spirit on the Prowl," "A Few Words," "Shadow of a Mountain") and then again to close the album with the blues-hued and spiritually-infused "Workin' on a Building." Adapted from a Gaelic song, "Rise Up My Love," is full of melancholy, and Gordon Lightfoot's "Song for a Winter's Night" is hypnotic and impressionistic balladry at its best.
Following her own muse leads Singleton into some unpredictable territory with such offerings as a precociously soulful and bluesy reworking of the traditional "Ain't Gonna Work Tomorrow." Emily can be dreamy and moving with a song like "Sweet Becky at the Loom," and she can also be surprisingly funky with an original "Hobo Railway," about a ramblin' man during the great depression. While their rocking groove of "Keep on the Sunny Side" is rhythmically propulsive, the wistful vocals rendered seem diminutive for the instrumentation. Emily doesn't shy away from intricate arrangements and interesting dynamics. Standard bluegrass instruments are heard, courtesy of such fine musicians as her husband Dave Higgs, Chris Joslin, Becky Buller, Jim Hurst, Ross Sermons, Jon Martin, Ricky Rigney, John Doubler and others. Singleton's music makes a large sonic leap from the bluegrass genre by copiously incorporating such instruments as viola, mandocello, accordion, pennywhistle, 12-string guitar, banjola, harmonica, concertina, octave mandolin, dulcimer, electric bass, and percussion. I'll bet it was great fun for musicians like Buddy Greene, Jeff Taylor, Andrea Zonn, and Dann Sherrill to add their stamp to the mix. It's a thrilling ride that documents her creative swagger, head, heart and soul.

If after hearing this project you don't tell someone about this great project you have done a disservice to the bluegrass community. From the first song "Spirit on the Prowl" to the last song "Workin' on a Building" the hairs on the back of my neck were standing up, and the chills were running up and down my spine. This project is very powerful. The voice of Emily Singleton attacks each song, and along with her fervor and enthusiasm takes you into her special place. Most cds are somewhat predictable but this one is the exception. You never knew what was coming which raised the level of anticipation for the next song. The song selection was very good. The mix of great old classics with new thought provoking original material made you want to listen to this cd over and over. I had to listen to the new arrangements of the old classics several times before I was comfortable with them. You need to listen to this cd several times in order to fully appreciate the fine lyrics of each song. I played the entire cd and received many requests to play many of the songs again. I hope I don't wear this cd out!!!

P.S. Jennifer Rinehart did a beautiful job!

Emily Singleton's voice has been described as "sweet, yet sultry," "delicate," "golden" and "deceptive."

It's all of those things -- and quite different from most bluegrass voices.

But then, "Spirit On The Prowl" isn't strictly a bluegrass album. It's a blend of folk, Gaelic, blues, country and bluegrass.

You'll find accordions, harmonicas, penny whistles, bowed basses, violas, banjolas, concertinas, a mandocello, a dulcimer and an electric guitar on here -- in addition to the traditional bluegrass instruments.

Singleton wrote six of the songs and five are traditional tunes performed in nontraditional ways.

It's a good album -- if you have a broad definition of bluegrass.

The new album by Emily Singleton can best be described as mountain folk. It's not folk music in the Joan Baez sense, but is a combination of mountain soul and bluegrass influences combined with Singleton's own unique approach. Jim Hurst, who plays mandolin on three cuts on this album, describes Singleton's music in his liner notes: "For me, the beauty of Emily's music and writing is that she naturally and organically puts all the ingredients together so that the result is simply that the heart understands first what the mind contemplates." While those may be heady words from Hurst, it does effectively describe the ambience of many of these cuts. There are songs on here that will stay with you, that will linger in your mind long after you've heard them. Emily, who resides in the mountains of Clarksburg, W.Va., has (along with fellow producers Dave Higgs and Tim Carter) put together an eclectic collection of original songs, earthy ballads, and uniquely arranged traditional tunes.
The first four songs on this album are Singleton originals, with the highlights being the old-fashioned murder ballad "Spirit Of The Prowl," followed by the beautiful "A Little Jaded." One revelation here is the splendid reworking of Gordon Lightfoot's "Song For A Winter's Night" that reminds one of the wonderful imagery written into this Lightfoot gem. The album ends with a slew of traditional numbers including a funky harmonicatinged "Keep On The Sunny Side," an atmospheric "Little Maggie," and a bluesy "Working On A Building."
Singleton and crew have brought along a fine array of musicians that includes guests Buddy Greene, Jeff Taylor, Becky Buller, and Andrea Zonn, to name a few.

Emily: I reviewed your CD this morning and firstly found two friends, Jimmy Hurst and Becky Buller, both among the very best musicians in the business, joining you on it…that’s always impressive. SPIRIT ON THE PROWL was not what I expected; there is so much great bluegrass that comes our way, so many bands that are excellent but sound alike. This project is different; it’s deeply emotional; it has in many songs a definite Celtic bent that proves my position that bluegrass is American Celtic.

Anyway, SPIRIT is something different and refreshing; as I listened, I managed to resist the urge to press the repeat button…that is until SONG FOR A WINTER’S NIGHT, one of my favorites. You managed to get deeply personal and convey the loneliness and longing in a way even Lightfoot couldn’t do. Then I realized I actually had goosebumps!

SPIRIT ON THE PROWL is what so many of us DJ’s look for…an original project grounded in tradition. Congratulations!

great cd by emily singleton... a beautiful voice... great instrumentation -- gotta hear this one... will be spinning it on my show on worldwidebluegrass.com

Bluegrass Airplay Top 35 -- “Life In the Moment” was on the charts for 16
weeks between December 2003 and April 2004.
Also, this cd review appears on the website under “Mixed Genre”.
Emily Singleton’s voice is deceptive. On the first few tracks she sings with
the innocence of a prim and proper lady. But don’t let these tracks fool
you. This lady can turn loose on her pipes. She can get your attention whenever
she wants. Life in the moment is a combination of bluegrass; folk and even a
little blues are on this release. The overall feel of this album is smooth
and sentimental. But like we said. She will get your heart pumping and your
feet thumping on a few of these cuts. This is as fine of music that anyone
could ask for.

With only one original, 12 of the 13 songs on From Within come from "without". What emerges from within these stunning arrangements is the golden voice of Emily Singleton.
Singleton's gentle yet deceptively powerful voice perfectly befits this album. She captivates with an ethereal version of the traditional "Wayfaring Stranger" and brings stark clarity to the despair of Jean Ritchie's "Blue Diamond Mines." Yet she's most impressive in her command of an astonishing medley in which a tranquil "Two Coats" ignites a fiery "Poor Lazarus".
Singleton is backed by a talented corps: anchored by Dave Higgs on guitar and octave mandolin, Ross Sermons on bass, and Teressa Welch on harmony vocals. Guests include Tim Carter on banjo and mandolin, and Stephen Seifert on dulcimer. Singleton capably contributes resophonic guitar on 2 tracks, including the instrumental "Spanish Fandango".
The juxtaposition of the instrumental and the a capella "Hard Fighting Soldier" accentuates the depth of From Within. Singleton caps the collection with the glorious title track, which she professes "just sort of came to me." Hopefully, there will be future inspirations. In the meantime, relish the elegance that comes from within Emily Singleton.