Glenna Bell: Press

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Slightly sketchy ZZ Top fan unleashes her folkie chains ("Outside the Bars," "The Texas Aggies Win Again"). [Note: Mr. Christgau gave The Road Less Traveled three stars, which--in his own words--means that the album is "an enjoyable effort consumers attuned to its overriding aesthetic or individual vision may well treasure."]

Country is at its best when it's simple, melancholy; something that stares you right in the eye without beating you down with force. It's not just that Ms. Bell's voice has that quality grafted to it; she knows how to dress it down without turning it all into one big gimmick. Just the right amount of echo, on her guitar as well as her voice, with lyrics that never overreach in their scope. The thematic territory is familiar, with heartbreak at the center of it all, but it is with honesty. Aside from a few slightly more lavish moments, this is sparse music with a void as its backbone, a void which pulls us in close to Ms. Bell and imbues her words with an equal gravity. This is a quality that cannot be faked or honed, it is intimate and honest without being simplistic or dumb; this is a sort of music that I'd feared dead.

The road less traveled, indeed. I say that simply because any number of singer/songwriters sound like some guitar wielding predecessor. Glenna Bell goes beyond a list of influences. She doesn't sound like the usual suspects—Lucinda, Gillian, Iris, Mary Gauthier, etc. She sounds older than that. Way older. Like Texas is old. The Road Less Traveled plays like an old field recording. You're listening to songs like the gritty prison ballad Outside The Bars and the mournful, yet redemptive Johnny Bush duet The East Side expecting to hear the pops and skips of old vinyl. With her arrangements raw, production back-porch sparse, and a haunting, halting vocal style, Bell fixes your attention on her songs and not the tired who-does-she-sound-like guessing game that gets in the way of a good listen far too often . . . People are listening. You should too.

This is not your ordinary country record. The Road Less Traveled is not quite your ordinary anything. It's not that Glenna Bell has invented a new genre of music or anything of the sort, it's just that she's found a startling original way of making the familiar -- heart songs and life-as-lived narratives, long the stuff of the country tradition -- sound almost as if she'd invented them.

There is a genre called country-folk, probably as good a characterization as any of what's going on here. Typically, country-folk singers are folk artists who are comfortable around country. Bell, on the other hand, is a country singer who knows something about folk. The folk in these (metaphorical) grooves is the peculiarly skeletal production, not at all like what's called "traditional country," which is very much a band sound with prominent fiddle or steel (or both) and electric lead guitar. Bell's acoustic guitar, sometimes with minimal accompaniment, is prominent on just about all of the cuts. Here and there a small ensemble joins her but never comports itself quite predictably.

Then there are Bell's clipped, brittle vocals, likely the first thing you'll notice -- as I certainly did -- on hearing this disc. Hers is one distinctive voice. It is nearly always effective, but never more so than on the shatteringly personal "The Texas Aggies Win Again," so raw and wounded that it may make you gasp. It's, well, incredible, everything a song can aspire to be. Her aching ballad of lost dreams, "The East Side," appears twice, once in a duet with Texas honkytonk hero Johnny Bush, the second time with John Evans. Somehow, each version finds its own personality, even if subtly so . . .

A resident of Houston, Bell is not in fact a honkytonk girl but a writing teacher with a graduate degree in English. Clearly, she knows how to put together an exceptionally fine song, and she also knows how to deliver it with grace, power and humor, all of it direct, unadorned and blunt. The emotions are laid as bare as emotions can be laid in a song. The Road Less Traveled is one highway no discerning musical wayfarer will mind passing down.

Texas singer/songwriter Glenna Bell sings with a quiet, stirring authority and edge, delivering this CD's 11 songs with such might and power that it's impossible not to be impressed by their simplicity and urgency.

Bell covers many subjects such as faith and inspiration ("The Family Bible" with Willie Nelson"); heartache ("I Can't Get My Mind Off You"); sports fandom ("The Texas Aggies Win Again"); and the oddities and inherent problems in any marriage ("How I Found Out I'm Insane).

She's not only a poignant and effective lead vocalist, but an outstanding duet partner (superb duets with Johnny Bush on "The East Side" and both Billy Ed Wheeler and Jerry Leiber on "Jackson").

The lack of studio polish reaffirms the grit in Bell's delivery and the quality of her interpretations and lyrical settings. The Road Less Traveled is brilliantly performed, and a triumph for a standout performer.

Has anybody been recognized by the Texas legislature for their music since Gary P. Nunn? Bell now joins that august rank with her tunes. A real from the heart folk rocker, Bell may or may not reach the top of the charts with hit singles, but if we were still living in an album world, this would be one of the sets all the hip kids would be toting in their back packs. Coming at you with a real load of Texas in her soul, Bell delivers the kind of set that cold cocks you when you don’t expect it and just makes you want to turn everyone on to her. Killer stuff that you don’t have to be a tied in the wool folkie to love.

Glenna Bell's magic is her ability to wring the purest emotion from a lyric with the least possible effort. The Houston-based performer doesn't overdo her intimate tunes with flowery notes or dramatic flourishes. It's a rare thing and gives The Road Less Traveled, Bell's gorgeous new record, a poignant shimmer. Every moment has a spare, sparkling beauty . . .

The album, Face This World (http://cdbaby.com/cd/glennabell) by singer-songwriter Glenna Bell, was one of the musical highpoints of 2005 in my modest opinion--a masterpiece, which almost got my number one spot in my personal top 25. Richard Stooksbury's debut album beat her, but she was in the respectable company of Sam Baker, Jimmy Lafave, and Colin Brooks.

It is a bit of a pity that the subsequent album, The Road Less Traveled, took such a long time (strike the iron while it is hot) because this pretty lady from Beaumont, Texas was in the neighborhood of Gillian Welch, Iris Dement, and Mary Gauthier and will need some luck to regain her place again.

But will she succeed with The Road Less Traveled?... We believe so!

"Never change a winning team" is also a saying that works well for Glenna Bell because the perfect collaboration with producer & multi-instrumentalist John Evans (vocals, guitar, piano, electric bass) was renewed on the opening track "Outside the Bars," and on the magnificent duet "The East Side" with Texas Country Music Hall of Fame member Johnny Bush, as well as "The Texas Aggies Win Again" and "La Casa Qua Yo Amo."

The sober acoustic accompaniment (guitar, bass, and drums), which was so characteristic on Face This World, also goes very well with the folky/americana/roots voice of our Glenna and lifts The Road Less Traveled high. Glenna's cover of Willie Nelson's "The Family Bible on the Table" could be considered as a (nice) leftover from "the influences of a cappella songs in the local church" where she grew up.


But all of this gives way (to our surprise) to a somewhat more lively Glenna Bell on "Can't Get My Mind Off You," and on Glenna's cover of J. Cash's classic duet "Jackson" [with John Evans]. She is even a bit naughty and funny with "How I Found Out I'm Insane" and "Shiner Bock & ZZ Top." Little girls grow big, throw away what they were once taught, and feel more and more at home in the musical scene . . . the result is amazing!

The appeal on "Be My Valentine on Chistmas" will create some
overheated situations in Texas. We will stay calm in "Limburg" and enjoy fully the pearl which is Glenna Bell's The Road Less Traveled.

Good Luck, Glenna . . . You did it again!!!!!
SWA, http://www.rootsville.be

GLENNA BELL/Hoping I Could Be Wrong
Writer: none listed; Producer: John Evans; Publisher: none listed; GB (track) (615-776-2060)
—Producer Evans is the star here, crafting an absolutely killer track sporting subterranean rhythm beneath moody, echoey guitar work. Vocalist Bell gives the suspicion and doubt in the lyric just the right touch of pain and paranoia. An outstanding disc debut. Who wrote this nifty little number?

Christmas Eve will be here before you know it.

So I'm giving you all a heads-up on what's new from Music City for your holiday soundtrack. These records are mainly from our country community.

GLENNA BELL/Be My Valentine On Christmas
Writer: Glenna Bell; Producer: John Evans; Publisher: Glenna Bell, ASCAP; Vintage Sound (www.glennabell.com)

Her vocal vibrato is a mile wide, but there's no escaping the audio charm of this simple, affecting song and its sweet, tinkling, acoustic instrumental bed. Recorded in Houston by a producer who seems to understand exactly how to play to Glenna's musical strengths.

Face This World
Glenna Bell
(Sugar Hill)

by SamHouston

Don’t let anyone kid you. First impressions of a new album by an unfamiliar singer are important. And even one quick glance at the Face This World album cover leads a person to expect an earthy, down-home collection of songs, exactly the kind of thing that doesn’t come along too often these days. So I was afraid that the cover had probably set me up for a big let down and immediately wondered if the actual music would, or even could, live up to my expectations. There was nothing to worry about.

As soon as I heard Glenna Bell’s deep, fragile vibrato on the first song, the album’s title track, I knew that she was something special. Glenna’s voice is hard to explain unless you’ve heard it for yourself because it’s a wonderful combination of strength and vulnerability, of small town Texas and big city Houston, of sadness and ironic happiness and relief. In fact, I recently had the pleasure of hearing Glenna do several of the Face This World songs live, just Glenna and her guitar, in somewhat stripped-down versions of the songs and I developed a solid appreciation for her lyrics as well as for her voice.

Glenna’s vocal style was developed by singing songs in the a cappella style of her local Church of Christ, just a few miles north of Beaumont, Texas, where she lived until she was about 10 years old. Southeast Texas left its mark on Glenna in more ways than one, even helping her, in large part, to choose the Sugar Hill Studios in Houston to record her two albums because it was the birthplace of the biggest hit of another singer from the Beaumont area, the Big Bopper’s “Chantilly Lace.”

The eleven songs on the album (ten listed and one hidden bonus track at the end) tend toward the somber side of life, and Glenna sings each of them as if they happened to her yesterday. She is joined on two of the tracks by her producer, John Evans, for the moving duets, “Moving On” and “Tumbling Down,” the first song a woman’s explanation to her lover as to why she’s leaving him after three years, and “Tumbling Down” being a more hopeful song of lost and lonely souls finding each other for support.

But not all the songs are sad or speak to opportunity squandered, and the title track itself, although about a sad experience, has so much energy that its overall effect may be just the opposite for most listeners. “Cosmos Café,” about a Houston restaurant, and “Poor Girl,” a song about two poor folks coming together in love, show how effectively Glenna can use her vocal style in quicker paced songs.

Face This World is for music fans who like their music with a little bit of an edge. It’s for folks who enjoy discovering those rare voices that don’t really sound like anyone else they’ve ever heard before, but do remind them of someone they know but whose name they can’t quite pull out of the hat. In Glenna’s case, she might make some think of Iris Dement, for others it might be a Mary Gauthier, or even a Janis Joplin. Who knows? All I can tell you for sure is that this album is not like the last album you listened to, no matter what that may have been. Face This World deserves to be heard. Give it a listen.

Face This World,” by Glenna Bell (Self)—She has the clipped vocal delivery of Janis Joplin without the blues and a Natalie Merchant quirkiness without Natalie’s I-Just-Bought-This-At-Starbucks snob appeal. Glenna Bell is a Texan who is one or two great songs, one or two lucky breaks from breaking out into the AAA radio format in a big way (she’s too rootsy for mainstream country). Her singing is heartfelt and distinctive (though on certain cuts she’s dead-on Janis) and the songs on “Face This World” worth recording.

Ms. Bell's latest release has ten tracks, all her originals. Length is 36 minutes, 18 seconds. Sound quality and production are outstanding. Musicianship is top-flight throughout. The album presents a collection of brand new, old-style country/roots songs. There are no throwaway tracks.

The lyrics are romantic slices of contemporary life as seen through eyes of a young woman. Her words ring with truth. The music draws on the wellspring of early Cumberland Mountains country/folk. But Ms. Bell's superlative, unique voice and her earthy presentation are the real strength of this marvelous album.

Ms. Bell opens with the title cut, a gripping song of loss that inspires strength. Perhaps the best cut on the CD, the panoramic melody builds around her impassioned vocals. The up-tempo "Poor Girl" tells of a simple country girl living alone in the city and her dreams of a lifetime with a trustworthy, kind man. The spirit of Johnny Cash lives in the music. The emotional ballad "Moving On" is an excellent duet with producer/award-winning vocalist Evans. The song tells about the pain of ending a love affair. The strong drumbeat of "John" builds this powerful song of desperation to its bleak climax. My favorite slow tempo song is "March To Me," a spellbinding poem set to a haunting, minor key melody. The album closes with "Cosmos Café," my favorite up-tempo song.

Banjoist Brian Thomas (Jesse Dayton Band) adds a neat flair to this pure country, happy romp. Ms. Bell's delightful high register yips are an old time country vocal technique that most singers can only dream about.

Very Highest Recommendation. HINT: There's a surprise about a minute after "Cosmos Café" ends.

There’s a cry in Glenna Bell’s voice like that of a classic country singer. Her songs cover classic country topics, too – from heartbreak to other hard life trials. Standouts include “Here in Texas,” an upbeat anthem with a nice, fat electric guitar and “Cosmo’s Café,” a toe tapping number with washboard and banjo. -JA

Traditional country is still alive and well in Texas. That is apparent from the resurgence of real country music developed here, halting lyrics that punctuate each and every line from the CD of Glenna Bell, Face This World. The Houston coalition production of John Evans and support of an emerging true roots revival make this CD a joy. For fans of Patsy Cline and Tammy Wynette to the neo-traditionalists that wish to have a sparingly beautiful album that transforms you back to 1953.

Forget the poodle skirt, this music takes you back to the honky-tonk life where men ruled the music and the soft touch of a woman’s voice was at first regulated to the back of the room. Bell’s styling makes you hang on to every word.

Backed by some of Houston's finest, Glenna Bell and Face This World will make you stand up and take notice of a new artist who needs to be recognized.

Album Review

For me and many colleagues, CD Baby is a gift from heaven because it offers a very mixed selection of different music trends, and what makes it so interesting is the opportunity to listen to many songs partially. In this way you can discern a lot because, let's be honest, in the Americana, alt. country, roots/rock world there is material which should never leave the studios. But once in a while something rises up and 2005 just began with Face This World from the for-me unknown Glenna Bell. I hold a jewel in my hands. This Texan beauty (born in Beaumont) was strongly influenced by acappella songs in the local church and the old style country albums of her own collection. That is why she preferred to record her songs at the famous Sugar Hill Studios to get that specific sound. Together with producer John Evans (Texan singer/ songwriter) who had his band accompany Glenna and who also sings two wonderful duets with Glenna, they succeeded very well with this album. Apparently there are earlier recordings from Glenna Bell, but this is the first album that got our attention. With 10 original songs and with the help of Chris Masterson (the Jack Ingram band) on lead guitar and Brian Thomas (the Jesse Dayton band) on banjo, Glenna has created a very eclectic masterpiece. This beautiful child has a different sort of voice that reminds me of Mary Gauthier, Iris Dement, Gillian Welch. Glenna Bell's sound is modern Americana in the truest sense. It is a unique blend of country roots music, romantic urban culture lyrics, and Texas folk rock; all sung in a voice that is powerful yet somehow vulnerable. More beautiful than Face This World is not possible. The album keeps you fascinated from the opening title track (Face This World) until the surprise ending track, Cosmo's Cafe. Beautiful songs with guitar solos are Hoping I Could Be Wrong and the up-tempo Poor Girl which is somewhat like J. Cash and somewhat like our Guido Belcanto, should he do something nice. March to Me and Could've Been My Friend are songs that give me goose flesh, pure acoustic Texan folk that places Glenna at the level of the best singer/songwriters. In the song John the drum roll makes its mark. Here In Texas, again with pretty guitars and banjo added, is a nice surprise. The two duets with John Evans--Tumbling Down and Moving On--are a statement of Dan Workman's words. (Dan is president of Sugar Hill Studios): Glenna Bell is the Loretta Lynn of Texas. No, that's not right, . . . she's better.

Good luck, Glenna. I love this record!!!!

Profile

Radio Feature

[Face This World] is a nice piece of work by a young singer/songwriter that runs in the vein of a pensive Mary Chapin-Carpenter, with two duets, “Moving On” and “Tumbling Down," with John Evans, that are almost more Ian and Sylvia than the originals. There's a minimum of backing to Bell's acoustic guitar and vocals, which are more than capable of standing on their own, thank you. When the band kicks in, as on the bluegrass flavoured “Here In Texas”, and “Cosmos Café”, it's toe-tapping time . . . Bell needs someone to toot her horn, fly her flag a bit more, as it were. She's worthy of the attention.

In a time when it's getting hard to tell Nashville and Austin apart, in walks Glenna Bell.

It's all real, it's all original, all fresh, and all good music. An outstanding voice and one like I've never heard. Her music is folk, country, it’s cowjazz. A good cd, a great act, ladies and gentlemen this is Glenna Bell.

GLENNA BELL is truly a rare artist. It isn’t very often that words can just pour out so easily to describe such music that almost brings us to serious tears (and pretty near did just that during the show). At the same time, we are fearful that our words could never do justice to such beauty and brilliance. Please do us a favour, go to Glenna’s web site, listen to a few tracks, and decide for yourself. Once you’ve decided, you should have her CD in your hand to listen to for an Eternity. Then we can all die happy when that eventual day comes.

Music critic, Roger Wood, author of "Down in Houston: Bayou City Blues" (University of Texas Press), says, "Glenna Bell's distinctive voice sounds as southern and as worldly, as down home and as smart, as Houston itself - the perfect complement to this set of finely crafted original songs."

Sarah Sharp, Austin-based singer songwriter whose Fourth Person (2004) is a top seller at Waterloo Records, writes, "John [Evans] just produced an album for Glenna Bell that is going to be legendary. Glenna is one of the purist musicians I will ever know. Her voice is the definition of an old soul. She gives the same performance for 10 people that she would for 10,000 because there is no ego attached." (www.sarahsharp.com)

Peter Pallas, owner of Cosmos Cafe in Houston, Texas, states, "Glenna Bell's emergence in the Texas music scene is reminiscent of Norah Jones' explosion a couple of years ago. Her ageless style imparts real life to music."

Singer-songwriter, Hayes Carll, says, "Glenna has one of the most unique voices in country music today."