BARBARA WAY: Mouthful of Rain

Barbara Way

Mouthful of Rain

© 2002 Barbara Way (747014438725)

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Crafty, melodic rock arranged "California country" style. Fleetwood Lou Ronstadt anyone?

tracks

1 Kenny
2 Darkskies
3 Mouthful of Rain
4 Your Story
5 Window Song*
6 Bird
7 Never Knew Him
8 Nowhere Slow
9 Thank God

notes

Winters in Buffalo, NY are notoriously long, grey, and blizzardy...and growing up, Barbara Way spent her share of them inside, listening to James Taylor, Carole King and Neil Young again and again. It's no surprise then, that when she began writing songs rather out of the blue, they were reminiscent of the simple soulful works of the early 70's artists.

Enter guitarist/producer Matt Pszonak, a high school friend of Way's, who dug her voice if not her early songs, and suggested they try performing together. Before long, the duo became a favorite of the Buffalo folk scene, known for their effortless harmonies, novel song choices and the comfortable, intimate feel of their shows. In the early 90's, they left western NY to drive across the country, playing small clubs along the way and searching for a new hometown with kinder winters. Unable to agree on a mainland metropolis, Barbara & Matt moved to Honolulu to replace two members of a popular country band. There for 18 months, they developed an affection for country music and decided to check out Nashville.

Over the next few years, Way adopted the Nashville alt-country crowd as family, and with their help & influence, developed her uniquely
flavored writing voice. Working with close friend and producer/ session musician Rick Plant, she recorded a distinctive catalogue of songs resulting in two samplers, Ticket to Somewhere (1995), and The Finger Tape(1996), as well as an unreleased full length album featuring Plant and members of Wilco. During the summer, she and Pszonak would resurrect their duo and entertain vacationers in Hilton Head SC, gaining fans from around the country and a small but loyal following in the southeast.

Now a Los Angeles resident, Barbara spent 2001 recording Mouthful of Rain. Produced by Matt Pszonak and featuring folks who grace the bands of gentle-rock legends Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt, and Sting, it promises to be an indie pleasure.

reviews

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  • Known Barb for years. Her voice is mesmerizing!
    author: Ed Bibaud

    Just a great CD. Each song better than the last. Can't wait to hear some new music from her and Matt

  • I've been listening to it constantly.
    author: Derek Von Briesen

    To put it succinctly: I'm blown away, mesmerized, amazed; I've been listening to it constantly. Like my favorite songwriters, Barbara has the wonderful ability to take complex, often painful personal experiences and universalize them for the listener. In Kenny, I see parts of myself; I've had my own seat at the window ("Window Song"); I've loved and yearned to go "Nowhere Slow." Like "Bird", I know how fear often makes running seem the only option. As with all my favorites, in her work I'm continually discovering new and as yet unexplored lyrical alleyways. Uncovering the depths of meaning, the very 'soul' that really good writers invest in their material, is one of the greatest pleasures I get from music. But as good as lyrics can be, without music to move me, they go for naught. For me, it's always the music first! Matt's and Barbara's melodies are original yet, at the same time, classic and timeless--instantly addictive out of the gate. These days, my litmus test for a great song is whether the melody and lyric move me enough to take the time to sit down and figure them out on guitar for myself. I've been there already. Her singing is simply stunning--the nuances in phrasing. The production and playing is absolutely first rate. Love the guitars and the B-3 is awesome. The rhythm section is tight and always there without getting in the way. The choice of instruments is so very tasteful . . . cellos (even slightly backwards, yes, in parts of Kenny?), fiddles, percussion, peddle steel, all manners of guitars ranging from fat & sustained, to sitar-like, to Harrisonian. Matt is one large talent, and should really be proud of his playing, engineering and production. Some more specific thoughts? Favorite song(s) (can't pick just one!): Your Story, followed closely by Bird, Window Song, Nowhere Slow, & Kenny. Catchiest potential single: Never Knew Him. It so grabs you right out of the gate: great intro with an instantly memorable guitar figure, a lyrical situation drenched in the kind of faithless love lost ["Last night I knew, the moment I saw the two of them" indeed!] that everyone can relate to, and an undeniable hook in the chorus. Best potential single/video with a slight novelty aspect Thank God. Most intriguing song(s) I want to ask Barbara about: Window Song (Destiny Keeps Teasing Me); Dark Skies Favorite Phrase Turned (in a middle 8: "Your Story"): "But none of that will matter, if you let me add a chapter." Best pure poetry: Mouthful of Rain. As hokey as they were, Donny & Marie knew the best music to be "a little bit country, a little bit rock n' roll." It describes perfectly the seminal style that grew out of LA in the late 60s/70s that came to be known as LA Rock. Originated by the Byrds, the Buffalo Springfield, the Flying Burrito Brothers, Little Feat, the Eagles, Crosby, Stills, & Nash, Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Brown, and others, it was a style that revolutionized rock n' roll. Barbara Way's writing style falls squarely within this time-honored tradition. Consider this my highest compliment.

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