Liz Meyer
"The Storm"
by Johanna J. Bodde


                                                                   

LIZ MEYER   "The Storm"   (Strictly Country Records) www.lizmeyer.com We're not dealing with a spoiled Alison Krauss here, who didn't even have to help doing the dishes when she was a child. This is Liz Meyer, a lady who LIVES and in her own way courageously faces challenges. It really appeals to me, that she believes in alternative ways to cure her illness! The quality of her new CD can easily measure with the works of Miss Krauss though and besides, I like this warm alto voice better... Liz has made a very personal album and knows how to put her emotions into wonderful words. She is realistic ("And the only wind that blows is from the North") but she's not too gloomy, she enjoys her beautiful memories ("My Favorite Time Of The Year"), winks naughtily: "I put you out in the hall just like a cat" ("Pulled In Two Directions") and then touches us in the song for her Dutch friend who died in a housefire, "Untamed". And we haven't even talked about the music itself yet! Bluegrass with a bit of classic country and folk, a mix of modern and traditional that makes us think of the musical approach by Chris Hillman and Herb Pedersen. Liz recorded "The Storm" in Nashville and could call on her old friends, musicians who -in the meantime- reached Olympic heights in their profession... Bela Fleck, Sam Bush and Jerry Douglas, also Stuart Duncan, Ron Block, Kenny Malone, Rob Ickes and Glen Duncan among others play with Liz. The harmony-vocals are sung by Mark Cosgrove and no one less than Emmylou Harris. Liz and Emmy were roommates, while living in the suburbs of Washington, DC during the years 1971-72... --- Written by Johanna J. Bodde, Dutch original of this review previously published on Real Roots Cafe, The Netherlands. =====