Venerdì 9 Feb 2007, 22:42

A few years ago, maybe as long as a decade, I remember listening in on a conversation that my mother and some of her friends were having about male vocalists. Specifically they were talking about which singers could just melt them, which ones they liked to fantasize were singing to or about them. I remember that they asked me what women singers had that kind of effect on me. I, about 26 at the time, and single, said that there were not any that I knew of; I was more prone to identifying with male vocalists than dreaming about female ones.

Fast forward ten years, and I find that six of my top twenty artists are women, or bands led by women, and that the songs I choose to listen to over and over lately are the one's sung by women . I don't know if fantasy really plays a role. The songs I like tend to be incredibly sad, rather than seductive. I have always loved sad songs, but this love of sad songs sung by women is a new thing. What does it mean? I have no idea. Maybe its the Zeitgeist: look at Norah Jones.

But, if you like sad songs, and you have never given female vocalists the time of day before now, take the time to check out Gillian Welch, Madeleine Peyroux, Gloria Deluxe, Billie Holiday, Patsy Cline, Natalie Merchant,Emmylou Harris, and so forth . And when these women do happy or triumphant songs, they sound like they could conquer the world. Trust me.