JUDY PASTER
Judy Paster (A.I.R.)
Reviewed by Shaun Dale

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Philadelphia-based singer/songwriter Judy Paster is getting a fair bit of positive buzz for this five-track debut EP, and it's well deserved. Some of it is also slightly off base, to my ear. The most common references are to Jewel and Sheryl Crow, but to my ears there are echoes of a previous generation of female singers. Paster can belt the blues like Bonnie Raitt, or sell a ballad like Stevie Nicks with a bit of a twang (apparently picked up during an Arizona sojourn while earning a degree in Environmental Studies). None of the comparisons are really fair, though, because Paster is an original, with a distinctive writing and performing touch. She's backed by Philly band Transistor radio, who provide a tight, tough base for her original tunes.

This self-titled effort just provides a taste, but it's enough to make me look forward to a full helping. Snap this one up so you can say you heard her back when....

Track List:

Rise And Fall * In The Sun * Blue Kind Of Love * Running * All My Relations

© 2000 - Shaun Dale