[FM] Barbara Phaneuf, Vance Gilbert, and Meg Hutchinson CDs: Top 12 Pi cks of Performing Songwriter Magazine three of the "TOP 12 PICKS"

[Bennett, Elizabeth]

     Performing Songwriter Magazine selected the CDs of Barbara Phaneuf,
Vance Gilbert, and Meg Hutchinson as three of the "TOP 12 PICKS" of
"Do-it-Yourself Songwriters" in their November-December 2000 issue.
      Reviews were written by Music Editor Russell Hall.  Here are a few
quotes.  The web address follows for the full scoop.

Barbara Phaneuf
Hat Full of Diamonds
Produced by Seth Connelly

      "Hat Full of Diamonds is just the second solo CD released by
Massachusetts-based singer-songwriter Barbara Phaneuf, but already she
exudes the confidence of a veteran. And with good reason. A gifted composer,
guitarist, and singer who shifts easily between '50s-style country pop,
sprite folk tunes, acoustic swing, and torchy blues ballads, Phaneuf often
evokes the spirits of such past masters as Ray Charles, Brenda Lee, and
Patsy Cline....  Phaneuf conjures up an aural world redolent of black and
white movies and a bygone, slower-paced era....  Most of all, Phaneuf is a
consummate craftsperson whose acoustic-guitar-based songs take on richer
hues with each listen....  Phaneuf appears poised to garner an ever-widening
audience."
www.barbaraphaneuf.com
    
Vance Gilbert
Somerville Live
Produced by Rick Lamacchia
     "Fans of Vance Gilbert have long known that in order to grasp the full
measure of his talent, it's imperative to see Gilbert perform on-stage. With
the release of Somerville Live, the Boston-based singer-songwriter-guitarist
offers the closest approximation to that experience one can get without
actually being there....  Peppering the show with comic vignettes that draw
from his own life, Gilbert offers up a perfectly-paced performance that
shines equal light on his silky smooth tenor, his agile acoustic guitar
work, and his breathtaking skills as a songwriter....  Gilbert can lay claim
to one of the most buoyant and uplifting spirits on the folk circuit."
www.vancegilbert.com

Meg Hutchinson
Against the Grey
Produced by Robby Baier, Meg Hutchinson, and Jesko Stahl
     "A master of introspective ballads filled with understated yearning and
an exquisite sense of metaphor, Hutchinson delivers her songs with a gently
affecting, poetic grace. On Against the Grey, her second CD, the
Massachusetts-based Hutchinson frames diary-esque ruminations in a candlelit
world that at times brings to mind a more ethereal Tracy Chapman,and other
times evokes a more wistful Natalie Merchant."  www.meghutchinson.com

For the full reviews:                   
http://www.performingsongwriter.com/frames/frameset.html