Album Review

Judith Owen – Ebb & Flow

• 7th Apr 2014

Ebb & Flow is the first UK release from Welsh singer songwriter Judith Owen, the tenth album overall from the long time US resident. It introduces audiences here to the Laurel Canyon era, 70s influences folk pop songs of a golden voiced vocalist who has been called “the queen of bitter sweet”. The piano driven, emotional songs on the album cover love and loss, dreams and heartache in real style with sensitivity and passion aplenty.

Owen’s backing band of drummer Russ Kunkel, bassist Lee Sklar and guitarist Waddy Wachtel played on many of the landmark folk rock albums of the 70s, working with legendary performers such as Carole King, James Taylor, Joni Mitchell and Jackson Browne. And their understated work adds much to an album that is largely dominated by the vocals.

Two very personal songs stand out, and Judith Owen has called them the bookends of the album. You’re Not Here Any More was written about her mother whose suicide when Owen was fifteen haunted her for many years. I Would Give Anything tells of the more recent loss of her father, a renowned opera singer and her biggest musical influence. This pair of songs are incredibly moving, but also have a universal quality that anyone can relate to.

The love song One In A Million is another that stands out, Owen’s sweet vocals portraying her words perfectly. Opening track Train Out Of Hollywood has a jazzy edge and a lovely soft chorus. And her most recent single I’ve Never Been To Texas, which tells of lost love, is melodic and moving, with a dreamlike quality.

Owen is known for covering a vast range of songs, reinterpreting them in her own style. Here Mungo Jerry’s 1970 hit In The Summertime is slowed down with a laid back Californian air that works perfectly. James Taylor’s great track Hey Mister That’s Me Up On The Jukebox also features, an upbeat version that gives the song a defiant feel.

This is an excellent album that showcases Judith Owen’s exceptional vocal talents very well. The emotional content is high throughout and while Owen seeks catharsis with some very personal writing she also shows a more playful side in several of the upbeat tracks. She is a talented lady who has taken a classic sound and given it a modern sheen, and the end result is guaranteed to appeal to a wide audience.

Venue: Ebb & Flow
Support Band: Twanky Records