Search - Carrie Newcomer :: The Gathering of Spirits

Absolutely the best of her career!

L. Jaffe | Springfield, VA USA | 09/10/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have been following Carrie's music ever since I found out we share the same birthday (May 25th, but I'm MUCH, MUCH OLDER!!!). Seriously, I was turned on to Carrie's music by some good friends, and have been a fan since her days with The Dorkestra. Carrie's songwriting has evolved into some of the best on the contemporary singer/songwriter scene, and she couples that with her expressive alto voice. This, the highly anticipated follow-up to her successful "The Age Of Possibility", addresses issues of a more current nature, including the timely "I Heard An Owl", Carrie's observations of just a year ago after the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington. Truly, the highlight of the disc is the title song, sung as a duet with the wonderful Alison Krauss, certain to become one of Carrie's most requested songs for years to come.I had the privilege of opening a pair of shows for Carrie in March of 2000. She is as lovely a human being as she is talented. If the adage of "good things come to those who wait" has any meaning at all, she will finally realize the success that has been eluding her for awhile that places her on the top tier of singer/songwriters on the international scale."

Stellar

Music fan | Norfolk, VA USA | 04/23/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Carrie Newcomer is a poet illuminating the darkness. Her words work as well bare on the page as they do set to music. Novelist Barbara Kingsolver is a fan. But Newcomer also possesses one of the most stunning voices in folk, an enchanting alto somewhere between Mary Chapin Carpenter and Christine McVie. With "The Gathering of Spirits," (Philo) her latest, she has released a superb followup to "The Age of Possibility," her infectious 2000 offering. While she acknowledges the darkness, she looks for the simple pleasures, even in the toughest of times. On the album's title cut, a duet with Alison Krauss, she notes, "life's a twinkling, that's for certain. But it's such a fine thing." On her 9/11 offering, "I Heard an Owl," she assures that she still believes, but also points a finger. "Don't tell me hate is ever right or God's will," she sings. "These are the wheels we put in motion ourselves." Typically, Newcomer venerates the details of life; she finds beauty and grace there. The music is varied, never settling on a predictable foundation. "Holy as the Day is Spent" and the touching, "I'll Go Too" are acoustic meditations. "Straight to the Point" and the defiant "I'm Still Standing" are pop rockers with country touches that easily could fit on a Mary Chapin disc. She even has a little fun with "Silver:" "Will you love me if I babble, let me win sometimes at Scrabble?" Newcomer takes such small moments and explores the surface beneath with unusual grace and insight. That makes "The Gathering of Spirits" one of the best releases to come along this year."

If you don't like her voice...

John A. Raymond | Athens, Georgia | 05/13/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"...better bail before the first verse is done. Otherwise you're just going to have to learn to love that graceful/gutsy alto.Her lyrics will have you. They're literate, bittersweet, deep. She's been places and figured out a few things. Better yet, you'll get the feeling she'd rather discuss them with you than just tell you about them. You'll want more of them.Don't worry, just kidding - you'll like the voice a lot!"