TRACY NELSON
Ebony and Ivory (Relentless/Nashville-Eclectic Records)
Reviewed by Eric Steiner

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Tracy Nelson's 20th album is cause for celebration. Ebony and Ivory opens with the Will Jennings/Matraca Berg gospel-flavored "You Will Find Me There," and from those opening notes, Tracy shows off her considerable pipes for a dozen cuts that range from soulful R & B, down-home country, and traditional Celtic music. Over the years, she's developed a reputation as a gifted songwriter and vocalist, and I'm glad that she's back with a new studio set. Ebony and Ivory is her follow-up release to the Grammy-nominated release of 1998, Sing It! (Rounder Records). Sing It! featured Tracy and two other extraordinary blues divas, Irma Thomas and Marcia Ball. On Ebony and Ivory, Marcia and Tracy reunite on "Got a New Truck," and I hope that it helps them realize their dreams of being on Car Talk, the nationally syndicated National Public Radio show featuring the Tappet Brothers (otherwise known as Tom and Ray Magliozzi). Unlike the cars that Tom and Ray profile on Saturday mornings, there are no clunkers on Ebony and Ivory.

Track List:

You Will Find Me There * Strongest Weakness * Got a New Truck * If You Know How Much * Last Chance * How Much Truth * Still Not Out of the Woods * I Must Be Crazy * Even Now * Quicksand * Strongest Weakness (alt take) * Silent Trail

© 2001 - Eric Steiner