Dori Freeman—Every Single Star

2019,  Blue Hens Music

[iTunes]

Dori Freeman’s voice in your ear is supple, a lovely low vibrato, slipping with a light twang through her songs. Her previous albums introduced us to a modern singer-songwriter genuinely influenced by the music of her Appalachian roots. Lately she’s been listening to quite a bit of Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris, in particular their Trio work with Dolly Parton. Every Single Star shows her to be capable making music in the timeless style of her country muses. “All I Ever Wanted” is heavily and heavenly influenced by Ronstadt, but like her role models, she has found her own unique voice and style. Teddy Thomson, who also produced her first two albums creates a sound that is at times a pedal steel away from classic country. Her songwriting is as gently persuasive as her vocals, telling the story simply, but with memorable turns of phrase. In “That’s How I Feel” she sings, “One can in the back of the fridge/ One doe sitting high on the ridge/ One man with his foot off the bridge/ That’s how I feel when I’m without you.” “Like I Do” is a celebration of what it feels like to be a mom. “Nobody’s gonna love you like I do/ ’Til I had a little baby, I never knew,/ That I could love someone like I love you.” Thompson joins her for “2 Step,” which is as sweet as any dancehall duet you have heard. The next generation’s Trio surely has a founding member in Dori Freeman! —Michael Devlin