I was introduced to Vanessa Collier’s music a couple of years ago when she released Honey Up, an album that ended up on the Billboard Blues Album Chart for several weeks. Like that album, her new release, Heart On The Line, features mostly original material, with Vanessa on both vocals and saxophone. She plays alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone and baritone saxophone on this release, and also resonator guitar on one track. Joining her on this release are Nick Stevens on drums and percussion, C.C. Ellis on bass, Scot Sutherland on bass, Cornell Williams on bass, Laura Chavez on electric guitar, William Gorman on keys, Quinn Carson on trombone, and Doug Woolverton on trumpet, most of whom also played on Honey Up.
Though this album contains mostly original material, she chooses to open it with a delicious and funky rendition of James Brown’s “Super Bad.” This track is whole lot of fun, and when Vanessa Collier sings, “I’ve got soul, and I’m super bad,” no one is likely to argue with her. As much as I love her vocal work here, which is cool and exciting, it is her saxophone that is really impressive and takes this track to a higher level. She follows that with an original song, “What Makes You Beautiful,” a smooth and soulful number in which she offers some advice to a young woman. “Twist your hair around your finger/Trying to get that curl that the cool kids do/Try to cover up your freckles with makeup/Oh, girl, you should just be you.” She then tells her, “You can’t hide what makes you beautiful,” a good message. And this track features another good lead on saxophone.
“Bloodhound” is a deliciously raw blues number, another original song, and the track on which Vanessa Collier plays resonator guitar. There is something compelling about this one, almost mesmerizing, with that percussion and those backing vocals (Vanessa provides her own backing vocals). And then the electric guitar takes over in the second half. The song ends with an a cappella howl that could have easily led into a chorus of “Werewolves Of London.” Then it is her vocal performance that really moves me in her beautiful cover of “I Don’t Want Anything To Change,” a song written by Elisabeth Rose, Maia Sharp and Stephanie Chapman, and included on Bonnie Raitt’s 2005 album Souls Alike. This rendition also features some nice work on keys, and a sweet lead on saxophone. That’s followed by a funky rendition of Randy Newman’s “You Can Leave Your Hat On,” here titled “Leave Your Hat On,” the third and final cover of the album, her version clearly inspired by the Etta James recording, rather than the original Randy Newman or Joe Cocker renditions. The lyrics are adjusted for a female singer and a male subject, which takes a bit of getting used to, but Etta James did that too, and this is a fun version, with a horn section. The horns seem to answer her when she sings “They say that my love is wrong.” And I like that jam at the end, particularly those horns. So good!
“Take A Chance On Me” comes on strong, with a force. This is an original song, not a cover of the ABBA tune. This one has more of a rock edge and power. There is no holding back. That’s followed by “If Only,” a soulful song, a character study of a “grumpy old man,” and one we can all relate to in some small way. For this is about fantasizing how our lives would be better if only we’d gotten more breaks, more advantages, and about the danger that in doing so, our lives are passing by, that we’re not enjoying what we do have. But who among us doesn’t spend at least some time doing this? “If only I could have everything I want, only then could I be happy.” This is, for me, one of the album’s highlights. And it is followed by my pick for the album’s best track, “Weep And Moan.” I love that sly, sexy sound at the beginning, a glorious and totally cool blues landscape. And what a vocal performance! It is alluring, powerful, and with an edge that could slice right into your flesh. “I’ve seen who you are when you’ve got it all/I’ve seen who you are when you lose/I’ve seen who you are when you think no one’s looking.” Plus, there is a good lead on electric guitar. And then those horns! This track just gets better and better. I highly recommend checking out this song.
“Who’s In Power?” begins with a good beat, and is soon asking questions we’ve all been pondering, especially in the last four years when all of us have taken a much closer look at politics and those in positions of power than we usually do. “Who’s at the top of the heap/And how’d they get there?/What makes them qualified?/Did they earn their seat/Or did they pay off somebody?” More excellent work from the horn section makes this track another of the disc’s highlights. And you’ve got to love that bass line. That’s followed by “Freshly Squozen.” Yes, it’s a goofy title, containing a non-word, but this is a sweet song. “She said I’m gonna squeeze you like a tube of toothpaste/Gonna hug you ‘til the stuffing come out/I’m gonna love you every second I can/Until you’re, until you’re freshly squozen.” The album concludes with its title track, “Heart On The Line,” in which Vanessa Collier sings “I’ve been waiting for somebody else to be strong/So I don’t have to hold their world up/I can just tend to my own/‘Cause my heart’s been bruised from overuse.” And when she sings, “I’m going home,” she belts the line out with a certain joy, a contagious joy. The line “I can’t stand to see people hurting without it hurting me too” is one that I’m sure a lot of folks can relate to in this time of pain and suffering. But this song is no downer. In fact, during the chorus, it feels like a celebration. “I’m going home/Kicking my shoes off, pouring a glass of red wine/I’m going home.” This is a wonderful ending to an excellent album.
CD Track List
- Super Bad
- What Makes You Beautiful
- Bloodhound
- I Don’t Want Anything To Change
- Leave Your Hat On
- Take A Chance On Me
- If Only
- Weep And Moan
- Who’s In Power?
- Freshly Squozen
- Heart On The Line
Heart On The Line was released on August 21, 2020.
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