FRAZEY FORD - Obadiah (2010)

I love how the internet works for discovering music; you log onto a streaming site and there on the home page one of the albums they’re pushing is by some folksy lady ambling through a field of blackgrass and I think “hmm looks promising I’ll give it a try”. Most of the time the try out will lead to disappointment but it’s a fairly regular occurrence too that a record will grab you immediately and that’s the case here; ‘Obadiah’ is fast becoming one of my albums of the year.

It turns out Frazey Ford has been a ten year long member of The Be Good Tanyas; a band I have yet to try out because their name rings a few alarm bells (something I shouldn’t go by on account of the fact that I love the band Spoon!). At the time of writing I still haven’t given them a go but then if Ford can put out a record this good on her own perhaps she’s a little watered down in a group setting a-la Neil Young in CSN&Y? I could be talking cobblers of course.

What’s the big deal here then? Well her songwriting is of a higher standard than I’d generally expect. That she covers the classic Bob Dylan tune ‘One More Cup Of Coffee’ and it’s one of the weaker tracks here should tell you enough but there’s more. The title track ‘Firecracker’ paints a picture of booze fuelled bravado with a hint of doubt and reflection, but you just get the feeling that there’s so much more going on beneath the lyrics that can only reveal itself over time. A seriously great song and the others don’t let the side down either but then it’s not just the songwriting; this ladies got soul!

From start to finish if a track isn’t being pumped along to a raw seventies soul groove, hip-swaying drums with fruity organ and funky guitar chops, then even a slower number oozes the warm feel of a great soul ballad. You know Frazey could burst into a short refrain of Ann Peebles’ ‘I Can’t Stand The Rain’ over one of the fade-outs here and it wouldn’t sound wrong. ‘Blue Streak Mama’ has such a laid back vibe that you can just about here Frazey calling out changes to the band buried deep in the mix. But then it’s not just the fact that she’s got soul that makes this album such a winner. Oh no, it’s that voice as well. Frazey Ford is blessed with a vocal sound and sultry style of delivery that is about as distinctive as you can get. But what a voice, it melts over you and has sent me back to this album again and again and again.

Essex Boy Rating: 9/10