'the door to the river' review(s):
ReviewFolk Roots, October 1997 When Canadian singer song-writer Susan Crowe made her debut back in 1995 with This Far From Home, it was easy to dismiss her as just another singer songwriter. For her ruminations on the human condition and affairs of the heart were no more striking than those of many others, but what she had in volumes was an ability to evoke a mood with her songs. A rare quality indeed. She was duly rewarded with a nomination for a Juno Award - the Canadian equivalent of a Grammy. Now two years later, she has come-up with a follow-up, The Door to the River, that is no less impressive. For, while the timbre of Susan’s vocals is reminiscent of Mary Chapin Carpenter’s and Carrie Newcomer’s she has gravitas too. For example, the usage of archaisms such as “thee” and “dwell” could be pretentious, yet here there is a stillness and contemplative quality that would not be out of place in a hymnal. Furthermore, she possesses that rare ability of crafting a lyric that bears scrutiny on its own terms. Throughout, the arrangements seek to embellish rather than overwhelm, with John Reischman’s mandolin being employed to particular effect. In the final analysis, what lets the album down as a whole is its lack of variety in mood and tempo, but its qualities probably outweigh such frivolous reservations. source: Folk Roots |
