Debra Fotheringham
Self titled
Genre: Singer/Songwriter
Style: Pop/Jazz

Debra Fotheringham is one of those rare talents who enters your life and hits you like a velvet sledgehammer. The impact can't be denied, but it feels oh so good. Her clear, smooth voice walks through your soul like a soft caress and leaves you wanting more. Her self-titled debut album is one I've been waiting a few years for.

Debra, it was worth the wait. The more I listen to it, the more I like it.

Debra's exact style is hard to pin down. Part pop, part jazz, she combines it all in an effortless interplay of lyrical melodies and engaging rhythms. While I wish there had been a slightly wider range of instrumentation on this first album (the songs seem to blend together a bit at times) the tremendous honesty and intimacy in her sound is extraordinarily provocative.

I first became aware of Debra as a backing musician for artists like Stephanie Smith and Maren Ord. She is a consummate musician, equally at home with drums or guitar as she is with her voice. I've never heard anyone lay down a cool Brazilian rhythm one moment, switch to "beat boxing" with the best of the hip-hop crowd, and then wow us with the silkiness of her voice in the same set. Her vocal control and musical sensibilities remind me of Jewel in some ways, but the spirit and execution are all her own. As a fellow musician, I simply cannot praise her enough.

Debra Fotheringham's debut album opens with an amazingly cool, slightly Jazzy pop number called 'Temporary.' The maturity of the lyric, and the sense of loss, belies her young age. The imagery of a relationship gone sour is both poetic, and amazingly clear.

Following is 'Across Oceans.' I can only guess it's based on a real person, a surfer and fan from New Zealand. Here is a message of tolerance and brotherhood, wrapped in an acoustic guitar driven pop/folk tune. The bridge is a breath of fresh and driving rhythmic guitar hits that perfectly contrasts the rest of the tune.

Next up is 'Build Me a Road,' a song about the social isolation found in many suburban areas. Homes are built next to each other, but the inhabitants barely know each other. There is no attempt to make social connections, even though they live so close. This song is a sad, but hopeful, cry for human contact.

Fourth on the CD is the soft, slow ballad 'Waterfall.' The song is a heartfelt elegy to unrequited love, but not from the perspective of the one in love. Rather, it describes the situation as the person who cannot return that love. The chorus sticks in my mind, and pulls me along that waterfall, and into the melancholy river it feeds.

The tempo picks back up with 'Eloquence.' Here we really get to see a smattering of the amazing control Debra has over her voice. One moment sharp and biting, the next smooth and elastic, she describes the limitation of communicating with only words, and at the same time celebrates language itself in the word-play of the lyrics, matched perfectly to the rhythm of the music.

Opening with a driving acoustic guitar riff, 'Tattered Crown' slams into us and tells us of the struggle to act, when faced with the influenced of complacency, topic that once again shows us the maturity of Debra's songwriting. A solo violin provides a great contrast to the guitar, and a perfect accompaniment to Debra's vocals, sharpened to a perfect edge for this song. Once again she cuts loose and shows us a glimpse into the amazing stylistic range she has.

Next up is 'Summer Rain.' Although I think this is one of my favorite songs on the album, it's hard for me to describe. Maybe that's why I like it so much. I can relate to the lyric on so many levels. The melody is smooth and infectious. It is both hopeful and sad, the perfect introspective song, without getting fully into melancholy.

'Waiting' comes in next. This is a full blown introduction into Debra's jazz influences. The lyric is full of ironic wit, and fun. Debra's delivery is equally fun, and the vibe solo in the bridge is classic. I love this song!

Continuing the up-tempo groove is 'Fire.' The melody and lyrics drive along at a breakneck speed, but still maintain some intimacy by the sparse instrumentation. This is pure rhythmic immersion.

Rounding out the CD is 'You are Truth.' Starting as an almost smoky love song, it begins to bring us back down to earth after the rushing wind of 'Fire,' and seems to want to leave us with a sigh. There's one section where the tempo picks up, and hints to us of the Brazilian beats of Jobim and Gilberto (she even sings in Portugese!) but, it is too short lived. When the end comes back, it too, is too short lived to really bring us home. It's an unfortunate complaint that I have with this song. It's simply not been given enough time to go where it wants to.

Don't let that one small complaint put you off buying this CD. If you only buy one album this year, you need to seriously consider this one. Of course if all you like is stuffy, pretentious music, you needn't worry about it. You won't find that sensibility here. But, if you're after something more honest, more intimate, and more compelling than any singer/songwriter you've heard before, you must pick up Debra Fotheringham's self-titled CD. This is a "Big Kahuna's Must Have" pick.

I've just got one request, Debra. Don't make us wait so long for the next album, please.

You can buy Debra's music at her MySpace page, and her website.