Deitra Farr – Let It Go! (2005) [SACD / JSP Records – JSP5105]
Title: Deitra Farr – Let It Go! (2005)
Genre: Blues
Format: MCH SACD ISO + Hi-Res FLAC
On this accessible set of romance-themed songs, veteran Chicago blues vocalist Deitra Farr offers dynamic interpretations that frequently dabble in pop and soul. Standout tracks include the melancholy, gospel-tinged tune “Signs, Signals, and Warnings” and the emotive ballad “My Love for You”, both of which highlight Farr’s deep, expressive voice.
The same qualities you could use to describe the persona that blues singer Deitra Farr inhabits in song—independence, self-confidence, a refusal to play on anyone else’s terms—also inform the way she deals with the music business. That might explain why, despite her international reputation and undiminished talents, she hasn’t released a solo album since 2005’s Let It Go! (JSP). Farr melds traditional postwar Chicago blues and fervent deep soul with modern-sounding emotional directness and a panache that few of her contemporaries can match. Let It Go! makes her case: she coaxes fatback funk out of players who usually prefer rootsier fare, like guitarist Billy Flynn, and she runs the emotional gamut from haunted urgency (“In a Dark Place”) to swing-inflected joy (“When They Really Love You”). Even on her most anthemic barn burners, which she delivers with full-hearted ebullience, Farr steers clear of “blooze-mama” posturing. She’s at her best live, so this all-too-rare hometown show is a must-see.