Nashville-based songwriter Janne Henshaw has assembled some impressive players for her debut album, Drifter's Prayer. The fiery picking of her top accompanists could easily overshadow her vocals, but instead these professionals know how to complement her comfortable delivery with just the right notes and fills. The cast includes Jeff White (guitar), Andrea Zonn (fiddle), Rob Ickes (dobro), Jim Hurst (guitar), Butch Baldassari (mandolin), Mike Bub (bass), John Mock (tin whistle, low whistle, concertina), Bryan Sutton (banjo), and Joey Schmidt (accordion). White, Zonn and Michael Reynolds sing the harmonies to Janne's sweet, mellow voice. Compression used during the mixing process unfortunately accentuates a little more of her breathing between phrases than I would have preferred.

A gifted singer with a distinctive voice and award-winning songwriter with great knack for the craft, Janne Henshaw has been compared to Nanci Griffith. I also hear tints of Mary Black, Jean Redpath, Kathy Kallick, Will Maring, Gillian Welch and Emmylou Harris. Along with her Nashville compatriots, this is a very impressive acoustic music album.

Henshaw draws her repertoire from original material, along with songs from Wil Maring, Utah Phillips, Betty Elders, Lee Satterfield and George Teren. The project opens with "So Long Gone," a hope for love reunited. "Fatherless Child" won her second place in the 2000 Merlefest Chris Austin Songwriting Contest. Songwriter Will Maring was also a Merlefest contest winner (in 1998), and her song "Bottomlands" is one of several standouts on this project. The addition of Mock's whistle and Sutton's clawhammer banjo give the song a distinctive Celtic and old-timey feeling.

"Dear Elinor" is a beautiful ¾-time song inspired by a love letter written by John Briner in 1863 during the Civil War. Sutton's banjo also appears in Utah Phillips' "Green Rolling Hills," which has been supplemented with additional lyrics written by Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard. Henshaw's bouncy "How Long" would've benefited from some hot bluegrass banjo in the mix. The album slows down with "Light in your Window" and "That's How it Seems" before the title cut adds a spark and optimistic message. The ballad "Mary Wants to Ride" illustrates Henshaw's aptitude for storytelling, and with Schmidt's accordion, they impart a graceful twist to her original Americana music. The album closes with the warm words, "I Will Not Forget You," that goes down Irish style like a pint of stout on a cold evening under the full moon. May the road to success rise up to meet you, Ms. Henshaw.

Janne (pronounced "Jan") Henshaw is a name to remember. To understand her musical influences, one need only review her background. Raised in Michigan, she performed classical, folk and country music. After earning college degrees in Music and in Folklore/Ethnomusicology, she traveled through Norway,  Ireland and the southeastern U.S. These experiences have obviously flavored her songs. She has toured throughout the U.S. and Europe, and she has been featured on such radio programs "The Woodsongs Old Time Radio Hour," "Homefront Performances" and "Bound for Glory."  (Joe Ross)

JANNE HENSHAW - Drifter's Prayer
CPG Records CPG-2556
P.O. Box 128424, Nashville, TN. 37212
 
Total Playing Time - 41:05

Songs - 1. So Long Gone, 2. Fatherless Child, 3. Bottomlands, 4. Wondrous Love, 5. The Stone is Rolled Away, 6. Dear Elinor, 7. Green Rolling Hills, 8. How Long, 9. Light In Your Window, 10. That's How It Seems, 11. A Drifter's Prayer, 12. Mary Wants To Ride, 13. I Will Not Forget You