Wittman's CD "Reckless" Indeed
T. Yap | Sydney, NSW, Australia | 08/16/2008
(3 out of 5 stars)
"Prime Cuts: Lay A Little Love On Me, Nothing But the Wheel, Ladylike
Joining the prestigious caste of Keith Urban and James Blundell, Whittmann is the latest winner of Toyota Star Maker 2008 Award (the Australian equivalent of "Nashville Star"). And to cash in on her win, "Reckless Side of Me" was produced within months after the win. Produced under the auspicious eye of Grant Thomson, Thompson has an iconic status among Australian country producers most notably he is known for his works for Melinda Schneider and the aforementioned Blundell. Vocally, Whittmann has a bluesy-soul vocal that breaks just at the right places to conjure attitude and emotion. Somehow reminisce of a young Wynonna Judd, Whittmann's powerhouse vocals can mine the depths of heartbreak while soar with goose-bump chilling heights of heavenly delights. Conterminous with most Australian country products today, 6 of the 12 cuts here are from US writers some of whom are top billed writers including Chris Stapelton, Michael Henderson, Al Anderson, Billy Lawson, Even Stevens, John Scott Sherill, and Angaleena Presley. While the remaining half come are co-written by Whitmann.
Frankly, the outside songs are the crème de la crème. Lead single and title cut, "Reckless Side of Me," coming from the pens of Chris Stapelton and Michael Henderson, is a pull-no-punches expression of letting one's hair down that features some ferocious electric guitar riffs. Patty Loveless' haunting "Nothing But the Wheel" is worthy resurrected. Though Whitmann's somehow disjointed phrasing is no match for
Loveless' original, the song's forlorn lyrics of despair still strikes a chord at the heart: "And thirty goes on and on and the lights go winding in the dawn/The sky's the color of polished steel/And the only thing I know for sure/Is you don't want me anymore."On the other hand, the sprightly and sparsely arranged "Ladylike" is a humorous poke at our social etiquette. Up and coming Nashville writer Angaleena Presley who wrote "Ladylike," is not ready to be ladylike with the feisty tough chick anthem "Ain't No Man" with cascading guitars and booming drums to boot. Interesting though is Whitmann's cover of Lacy J. Dalton's somehow obscure "Lay a Little Love on Me." With echoes of a live garage-like feel to her delivery, Whitmann transforms this Dalton classic into a bluesy tour-de-force performance that seems to leap out of the speakers with her vocal animation.
Now, turning to the originals, they are at best disappointments. Though the ballad "Take Me Away" has a Pink-esque rock feel, it is let down by its pedantic lyrics: "Heal me, heal me/Take my lies, take my lies." Sorry to say, but high school English students can write better than such literary torpor. While songs like "Ladylike" and "Nothing But the Wheel" trumps on the clever use of imagery and colorful language, "Her" a Whitmann and Carr is as agrestic as it gets, it's like overhearing a schoolgirl complaining o another about her boy problems. Also musically, none of the Whitman co-writes come close to country sounding. Rather, they sound like amateur rock songs guised with pedal steel; the pit being the all-out nonsense "Girls Get Loud." If you really like a classy and superior feminine pow-wow song listen to Wynonna Judd's "Girls with Guitars" instead.
Also, another minor pickle worth perhaps mentioning is that there were times Whitmann sounds off when she tries to hit the higher notes. And in this day and age of overdubs and high technology, such mishaps are unforgivable. Nevertheless, as a debut CD, Whitmann shows promise. Her well chosen outside material are what save this CD; maybe she should let the scribes do the writing. And stay with the mic for now.
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Track Listings (12) - Disc #1