home anywhere album of the year

This is the first in what will be a series of between 1 and 17 posts designating the first annual home anywhere _____ of the year awards. In other words, if I have the time and inclination to grant other artists/writers/filmmakers/friends/wives/children comparable awards, I will do so. If not, you're on your own for finding quality in those areas.

Anyway, we here at home anywhere listen to a good bit of music. Not as much as your average teenager with an iPod surgically attached to its skull region (do I sound old and cranky?), but what we lack in quantity we make up for in quality in that particular comparison. Of all the music we've heard this year, the dark, smooth altcountry/blues/gospel sounds and rich lyrical images of Amanda Leggett's home please us the most.

After many years of adding her one of a kind voice to other people's music, Amanda has grown into her own skin as a writer and a performer. We truly love the sound of this album, but we may be even more affected by the depth and texture of the songwriting. Amanda gracefully marries stories of sadness and hope in a way that affirms life as we all really know it and anticipates life as we long for it to be. Our favorite track (so far), Teaching Me My Name, is part love song, part fairytale, part sermon, part scripture.

Now it's true that Amanda is a friend of ours and that she borrowed half of our name for the title of her album, but we believe we've managed to keep our personal bias at a minimum in selecting her for this prestigious honor. Folks, the songs are just that good. As I wrote over at cdfuse.com, where you're going to go to buy her album:

These are real songs about real life penned by a real person with a real (and terribly uncommon) sense of what was, what is, and what might be. Now if only they could find someone with a rich, unique voice to drive and drift through them. Oh wait, there's that too. Seriously, it's the best album I've bought since last Tuesday. No, really. It's that good.

Well, I didn't write all of that. There are unwashed plebeians visiting that site who probably wouldn't get the home anywhere sarcasm, but you get the point.

In all seriousness, I strongly urge you to give home a listen and consider purchasing it (and maybe a few for Christmas gifts). I won't exhaust a lot of words trying to describe Amanda's music or compare her to more famous musicians you know and like. You can read more about her influences and style when you go to listen to the album.

Comments

[Dr. Jayhawk]

Wow Thad! You are going soft. What about Britney Spears and her new CD "Prerogative" or the newer Snoop Dogg? I tend to prefer bubble gum music, but that is just me. Do you really not like manufactured stars? They are just so pretty. How can you not find "their" music the best?