Waiting On You Tonight. Beth Lee

Why do I like one album by an artist in the Americana segment of music and can be turned off seconds into the first song of another? A myriad of answers can be given, starting with how broad Americana as a genre is. Fact is that it only took a few seconds of listening to Waiting On You Tonight for me to prick up my ears. Music and voice landed into my ears immediately.

Beth Lee for me is a new name. She's a singer from Austin in Texas, releasing her first solo record, produced by Chuck Prophet & The Mission Express' drummer Vincente Rodriguez. His colleague, guitarist James DePrato is present as well. Not surprisingly, the music is a mild form of roots rock. A tight playing rhythm section, a lead guitar allowed to play fired up country licks all over the songs and a warm organ for the softer tones. Not a word more is needed to describe most of the songs, were it not that they sound so nice to me. By creating variations in the tempo, the songs start to appeal individually. Take the difference between the more up tempo 'Yale St & 45' (I keep hearing Meryl Streep and a 45, a real "Mamma Appelsap", if you ask me) and the laidback 'Playin' Along'. The latter has a more country feel due to the steel guitar solo, but to me sounds more like an extremely nice ballad.

With multi-instrumentalist Julie Wolf added to line up, Beth Lee explores decades of American pop, rock, country and blues and incorporates all these genres into her songs on Waiting On You Tonight. The result is that a soft pop song like 'Birthday Song' easily goes back to back with the fast rocker 'Pens And Needles'. Both add to the fun listening to Beth Lee's album is. From the chiming little bells in the former song and the at least three different sounds of the guitar solos in the latter, it goes to show how much fun the musicians had in bringing more to the album than just that which is necessary or functional. Both make the respective songs shine the brighter.

All the different styles being played also attests to the quality of the musicians behind Beth Lee. This hints towards seasoned pros who play what is demanded of them before they go home or drive on to the next session. Because of that there is a danger of becoming to blasé. E.g., a song like 'Four Letter Name' suggests this, also because Beth Lee's voice is not one for fine details and that shows in this song as well, making it average.

Luckily for us listeners there are so many songs on Waiting On You Tonight that belie this impression. Where the fine details make a song sparkle and Beth Lee's voice stand out. 'Understand Me' is another perfect example how the musicians create details that show their inventiveness in the studio. The warm organ, the lap or peddle steel guitar soloing slowly but surely add so much.

All together it is fair to conclude that Waiting On You Tonight is an album that deserves being heard by all who like their music to be somewhere in between pop, country and rock.

Wo.

You can listen to and order Waiting On You Tonight here:

https://bethleethebreakups.bandcamp.com/album/waiting-on-you-tonight

or listen to our Spotify Playlist to find out what we are writing about:

https://open.spotify.com/user/glazu53/playlist/6R9FgPd2btrMuMaIrYeCh6?si=KI6LzLaAS5K-wsez5oSO2g