At least I learned something from The Brit Awards 2009 on Wednesday evening. Although I’ve still not watched the whole event and therefore know who won what (or judged Kylie’s co-hosting), I do know that Beth Rowley was robbed of the Best British Female gong. I didn’t even know she was British, so her appearance in that category or in the shortlist at all was news to me.
Bought as a Woolworths closing-down impulse buy at a ridiculously cheap price on the back of a free iTunes Single of the Week a few months back, her folk, blues, and jazz-tinged début long player Little Dreamer contains a handful of gems. Sweet Hours, So Sublime, and I Shall Be Released are impressive enough, but Oh My Life is undoubtedly the stand out track.
One of the best Sixties-sounding modern songs I’ve ever heard, it has more than a shade of Dusty or Cilla, and Rowley really manages to pull the big-band soulful sound off, with saxophones, strong backing vocals, and a hummable melody all adding to the performance.
One of the most surprising recent musical discoveries, Beth Rowley doesn’t fit into the Duffy mould (she’s better), and must be one of Britain’s best-kept new musical secrets. Well worth championing in 2009, Little Dreamer is out on Blue Thumb Records/Universal Music Classics now.
Tags: Beth Rowley, Music
Yea, discovered Beth a few months back myself. I hear she has now finished with Universal, their loss!