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Carol Noonan – Somebody’s Darling
While well respected by critics and fans as an excellent contemporary singer/songwriter, Carol is not known for her upbeat songs, and this new collection with a subtitle of ‘songs of war, loss and remembrance’ isn’t going to be the disc to change that.
Like all her previous self released albums, ‘Somebody’s Darling’ is a mixture of originals, covers and traditional songs, but there’s continuity across the 11 songs and the varied material fits together effortlessly.
Considering the songs cover a sobering subject, this is a surprisingly easy disc to listen to and is less sombre than you’d expect and this is largely due to the strong melodies, detailed musical backing and excellent vocals.
From the first song ‘Emma’ (a Noonan original chronicling young love in the American Civil War), its Carol’s vocals that stand out, she’s always had a wonderful voice, but on this collection there’s a natural delicacy, intensity and intimacy that is really striking – this is disc is full of superb vocal performances.
She’s assembled a strong group of musicians on the disc with Kevin Barry and Alan Williams providing excellent guitars and keyboards on most tracks, with other instrumental details coming from strings, bass and there’s some subtle banjo from Carol on many tracks – overall it gives the disc a slight traditional American edge that suits the material and themes perfectly.
On a disc with strength over material sourced from such diverse backgrounds picking out highlights is difficult but the two contemporary covers stand out on the quality of the interpretations and performances – Tom Wait’s ‘Tom Traubert’s Blues’ is stunning, beautifully sung and performed, and ‘Brothers in Arms’ feel like a different song with a female narrator. Her own material fits in well amongst the covers and trad material, and ‘Emma’ and ‘A War That Can’t be Won’ are both excellent contemporary singer/songwriter tracks by any standard.
‘Somebody’s Darling’ is a wonderful disc in every respect – strong songs, excellent instrumentation & arrangements, stunning vocal performances and a beautiful set of liner notes. Highly recommended.
NOONAN CAROL - SOMEBODY`S DARLING
Noonan Carol
CD (Cat No: 12893)
NOONAN CAROL - SOMEBODY`S DARLING
