Lorraine Feather
Ages
Jazzed Media
www.jazzedmedia.com
By George W. Harris

When Lorraine Feather puts out a new release, you don’t only listen to
the music, but you also must pay careful attention to her lyrics, as
she’s one of the most clever and astute writers out there this side of
Stan Freberg. She also has a knack for picking the best musicians to
team up with, in this case The Yellowjackets’ Russell Ferrnte, Shelly
Berg and Dick Hyman on piano, Grant Geissman on guitar, Bela Fleck on
banjo, Gregg Field and Michael Shapiro on drums and Tony Morales on a
whole bunch of percussion that ranges from dog bowls to trash cans! The
arrangements and musicality on these boppish tunes are erudite and
crisp; what will get you wondering throughout the disc is how much if
any of the lyrics are autobiographical. Feather creates a mood
somewhere between Frank Sinatra’s “September Of My Years” and Joni
Mitchell’s “Blue” with songs about never raising a family (“I Forgot To
Have Children”) being single and feeling the biological clock (“Two
Desperate Women In Their Late 30s”) and would-be relationships (“I
Always Had A Thing For You”). There’s still some zaniness in tunes
like “A Lot To Remember” and “Scrabble” but even these have a sense of
futility to them. Women listeners will feel deep sympathy for this lady’s insight,
as she perceptively captures the angst of modern urban women. Pensive and penetrating.