Iris Dement [My Life]This album was a purchase from Our Price back in 1994, who were doing a promotion called 'No Risk Disc', buy the disc, and if you didn't like it, you could return it and get your money back, well i never returned it, a winner for Our Price, and a winner for me.
At first i would pigeonhole her as Country music, but on closer inspection i feel she's American Folk, or more towards old Gospel, you know you're onto a winner when you just can't slot someone into a neat category, she'll hit the big 50 early next year.
The disc can seem depressing in a way, about death, love lost, sinning, boredom, tragedy, a life that adds up to nothing, but between the lines there's a stoic energy, that life can teach you great lessons, personally i find this album tremendously heartwarming and positive, it doesn't pretend life is a fairy tale.
On this listen, the middle track 4-6 are impressive, and it's track 6, an old Gospel song called 'Troublesome Waters' that really hits the mark, i guess it's a hymn, and one of only two tracks on the album not written by Dement, it's nice and gentle, but each verse gains in intensity and Dement's drawl starts to crack, the third verse is meaningful,
When troublesome waters are rollin' so high
I lift up my voice and to heaven i cry
Lord i am trustin', give guidance to me
and steady my boat on life's troubled sea
punctuated by dobro and piano etc, the song weaves a lovely magic.
Here's John Robert Mallernee singing Troublesome Waters on YouTube, he sings in a different key, plus he's got a good voice, he intro-talks for the first minute.
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