The second album from the feisty Miss Quincy builds on Your Mama Don't Like Me and expands on the sound of that album. This Tim Williams produced album features a new set of gritty songs that seem to spring from some dusty, dirty mining town saloon stage. There some sophistication at work here though with subtle effective arrangements that underline the assured singing. Miss Quincy reckons that the devil may have the best tunes and goes about channeling them. She is a good girl about to change her ways. Her version of Nina Simone's risque I Want A Little Sugar In My Bowl shows that she can be as soulful and bluesy as the best of them, the song has a smokey late night feel that is enhanced by the love-lorn trumpet solo. By way of contrast Dangerous is powered by a propulsive guitar riff and the sassy vocal that is bolstered by the harmony singing of Alyssa Jean Gardner, who appears on many of the album's tracks. 'Til The Money Comes In is a plea for her partner to stick with the protagonist through the hard times, it's a guitar and organ based slow ballad. Dawson City Line builds from an acoustic and electric guitar motif to again highlight the expressive vocals of Quincy and Gardner. The rootsy well from which these songs spring serves them well, giving them a sound that has been immersed in the deep waters of human emotions, frailties and longings. Those who found Miss Quincy through her debut album will be happy to be re acquainted with her again on this rewarding follow-up. Newcomers can start right here and get down and do it like the devil does.
Miss Quincy 'Your Mama Don't Like Me' Self-Release
A compelling singer and writer who makes here presence felt right from the get go. By the time you hear the second track Nobody With You, as in "you don't take nobody with you when you go" sounds like it should have been played in an Alaskan mining camp in the 1890's or in a cabaret in Berlin in the 1930s. The music on offer here was recorded in below zero temperatures in a log cabin in British Columbia with a group of acoustic players who all give these songs solid texture and thrust. Banjos are plucked, violins and mandolins are playfully played. This is an of-the-moment cold time take on old time music that could well make Miss Quincy a hip name to drop in the future. She has a strenuous, forceful voice that has character and carnivale clarity. The plaintive songs are rooted in strong woman blues, vaudeville vehemency and string band sanctity. The harmony on Wild Mountain Flower blows clear from a different time though they come from Miss Quincy's own hand. Reno's Song features is a cross continental musical instrumental while the evocatively named Sweet Jesus Cafe has tap dancing and a multi-voiced chorus. It must have warmed up the cabin that night. A couple of outside songs are by Memphis Minnie, an inspirational source, among many hints of past times and passed over times. These are memorable songs from another name from the increasingly independent Canadian roots music sector. Check out www.missquincy.net