An album sleeve note informs the listener that the ten songs on this debut album are the product of a song writing course Lizzie J. Taylor went to in 2010. Her website describes them in simple terms as being about her life and her family.
Lowlands, the nearest thing to a title track, was recorded in Glasgow but the rest was recorded by Nick Barraclough in Cambridge. Barraclough also plays on the album and lends a hand with backing vocals.
His pedal steel adds a country lilt to the standout track Redhaired Daughter in which the singer's declarations of love contrast with darker emotions: "she'll bite the hand that rocked her till it bleeds".
Duo partner Mark Gamon on guitars and the fiddle playing by Greg Smith on
Leaving Like The English give added substance to the straightforward arrangements.
When not flying solo, Taylor is also part of a Bluegrass group The Woodberrys
and the syrupy I Sing was co-written with Sue Pomeroy of that band. The carefree tone of this track ("I'm just a woman with a red check dress") is at odds with more serious content elsewhere.
In Your Loving Arms is breathily romantic while on Gorgeous she sings in praise of more carnal pleasures :"Let's taste the fruit love brought us".
One Thousand Times Untrue reveals traditional folk influences as she admits to murderous inclinations after being betrayed.
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As song writing exercises, the closing two tracks are the most interesting.
The Navigator appears to take her beyond her immediate circle of friends and family into the wartime experiences of a co-pilot. I confess to being confused by the song's references to a ration girl and the fall of the Berlin Wall as it leaves it unclear whether we are in world war II or some more recent conflict zone.
Military connections also surface in the melancholy closing song, Peter My Brother where a line about her sibling being "a lamb to the slaughter" suggests he was killed in battle.
In general, Taylor's songs are best described as personal journeys and for the most part they are homely, uncomplicated and a little dull.
However, when she is emboldened to take on more ambiguous subjects, she shows an ambition beyond that of becoming just another easy listening singer. It is to be hoped that this the direction any follow up albums will pursue.
Lizzie J. Taylor's website
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