(Hayden's Ferry) Atlanta, Georgia based Kate James and Lost Country are among the newest voices outside of Nashville's commercial mainstream trying to steer the music back to it's country roots and preserve it's rich heritage. Fronted by Kate, Lost Country's other members are Bill Brooks on lead guitar, Chuck Kelly on drums, Jon Fleming on bass and Mark Van Allen on pedal steel.

Homewrecker, Heartbreaker is the band's debut album and while it's overall sound harkens back to the days honky tonk was regularly heard on Top 40 country music stations, the band's members come from diverse musical backgrounds with diverse influences which is what they feel brings their music a fresh sound and perspective. Kate herself was trained in classical music and didn't discover and fall in love with country music until her teens. She met Chuck while both were working on a mutual friend's project, and though they both shared a love of country music and decided to start a country band, neither had any experience playing it. They then met Bill, who'd played blues and jazz for a number of years but had never played country. While trying to fine tune the band, they began looking for a pedal steel player and found Mark, who in turn introduced them to their bassist Jon. According to Kate, she chose to perform country music because "I love the straight forwardness of country. Country doesn't pretend to say something by saying something else. It doesn't tell you that ‘my lover is a bird who has flown away’, it says that ‘my lover packed his bags and left me’. It gets to the heart of the matter without trying to confuse the listener."

Homewrecker, Heartbreaker is packed with classic style honky tonkers like the title track "Homewrecker, Heartbreaker," the shuffling "Lonely Hearts" and "Holding On To Nothing" that features some red hot guitar picking. On others, the band infuses other influences into their honky tonk sound. The opening track, "Bring Me Water" includes a hint of So-Cal country rock, "My Heart's Been Broken" incorporates both rockabilly and Bakersfield guitar licks, while "Picture Show" is a rockabilly shuffle. They turn up the heat by adding jazzy blues to the spunky "Treat You Right" and "Rollin' Hills" has a distinct gospel-bluegrass influence. The Tex-Mex flavored "Fool For You Honey" has a slight retro feel and would fit very comfortably on any Mavericks album. Also on the retro side is the torchy shuffle, "Sing Me To Sleep," and the band goes into full torchy barroom weeper mode with "Poor Little Fool."

Because Kate sings lead vocals, it's natural that people would want to compare her to other traditional female vocalists such as Patsy, Loretta and Tammy to name a few. That would be unfair, because Kate really doesn't sound like any of them. She chose to strike out with a band instead of as a solo performer because she prefers the camaradarie of band members playing their influences off each other and enjoys the harmony vocal aspect a band provides. Says Kate, "Because I am who I am and the guys in the band are who they are, our sound is different from what has been done before. I think it's extremely important to be who you are and not try too much to imitate others. I think that way we can create something that is unique while respecting the people who have come before us." On that level, Kate and Lost Country succeed in doing just that with Heartwrecker, Heartbreaker. Their sound is at once both comfortably familiar yet refreshingly different. Kate proves herself a solid country vocalist and songwriter and Lost Country is a tight, well oiled band that provides strong backing instrumentally and on harmony vocals. Armed with Homewrecker, Heartbreaker Kate and Lost Country show they're more than worthy candidates to help steer country music back to it's roots. 

Standout Tracks: "Bring Me Water," "Holding On To Nothing," "My Heart's Been Broken," "Picture Show,' "Poor Little Fool," "Treat You Right"

On The Net:  www.katejames.com  www.haydensferry.com

AnnMarie Harrington TakeCountryBack July 2004