Divisions and Precisions

Oh yeah...

I never wrote about going to see Sweet Honey in the Rock in concert last Friday, and I should have. If you haven't heard my ravings yet, Sweet Honey is a mostly acappella group of six African-American women, five vocalists and one sign language interpreter. They do a mix of old spirituals, tribal music, modern jazz and R&B stuff, and all of it comes with a strong message of social justice. These are six highly educated and accomplished women, and they're a joy to watch perform. Differing ages and shapes and sizes, they dance and move and sing until the audience joins in.

I saw them for the first time last year, so I was excited about seeing them again. This time they brought a very pleasant surprise with them. The founder's daughter, Toshi Reagon, is a musician in her own right with her own band. I wasn't sure how I felt at first about the group that I loved for its acappella sound, being backed by a rock band.

Then Toshi started to sing. First of all, she's a big woman, maybe even my size, and she's got a voice that more than matches. Oh man. I was blown out of my seat. She has a style similar to Tracy Chapman, but more so. Livelier, younger, maybe. She's also clearly inherited her mother's songwriting gift as well. I can't say enough. Seriously. Go here and you can pretty much listen to her entire latest album (which I received from Amazon today--that reminded me that I'd never posted about it). Go on. "Mountain Top" is a good one to start with, although I haven't heard one yet that I haven't liked. Go. Go listen. Now.