Luminous
Valerie Carter is a great singer, and these first two albums
released respectively in 1977 and 1978 present a fine mix of rock ballads, West
Coast harmony, and funkier numbers – though that doesn’t quite reflect the
breadth – and she is ably supported by the likes of Lowell George [having sung
in Little Feat], Jackson Browne and James Taylor [singing Angry Blues with Lowell on JT's Gorilla, recently reviewed], just some of the musical
luminaries she went on to support, as well as write for, over the next two
decades without pursuing her own solo career – check out the list of album
credits on Wikipedia: how impressive is that!
Her vocal is similar to and certainly sits comfortably with
the likes of Linda Ronstadt, Laura Nyro and Rickie Lee Jones. My favourite of
the two albums is her first, Just a Stone’s
Throw Away, and there’s a sterling version of the Lowell George/John
Sebastian Face of Appalachia –
gorgeous vocal over banjo – with Lowell contributing to the writing of three
other tracks with Carter.
Her next solo release wasn’t until The Way It Is in 1996, an album I have ordered today and look
forward to hearing.
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