Thanks Will for the post. I agree mostly with it. I go for the likes of Alberta Hunter, Ida Cox and Abbey Lincoln whose voices may not be Ella Fitzgerald- or June Christy-pure but achieves a level of intensity through economies of scale.
That being said, I like the husk in Joni's voice in BSN. Though T'log has yet to come to our shores here in the Philippines, I listened to some of the tracks in the Net and I agree that her range has been limited further. But for some reason, I like that ravaged voice even better. As though she storytells to us her songs and her vocal understatements are even more authentic (for me) and seem to have a hue that I usually associate with wise old(er) women who has seen much in life. I may be saying quite the opposite when T'log finally arrives here in Manila and I may even join the group in the List who objectively admitted that T'log, given its obvious merits, somehow floundered. Confession: I know of people who don't want to read reviews before they themselves listen the album, but I read almost all the rveiws for T'log in the List and from my "outsider" perspective, I can almost hear the entire album just by the expressions. Eagerly awaiting T'log's travelogue in Manila Joseph np: Kate Bush "The Kick Inside"
