Brilliant

Emmylou wrote most of this CD and it's as brilliant as any writing at any time. Check out what Emmylou has to say about the songs at: www.emmylou.net/reddirtgirl.html



The Pearl speaks to how dealing with suffering can ultimately enrich us. It is haunting and beautiful, as is Michelangelo, a song that came to her in a dream.



The backup singers on Tragedy are Bruce Springstein and his wife, Patti Scialfa. My Baby Needs A Shepherd will bring tears to the eyes of a troubled teen or their parents. Bang The Drum Slowly was written to honor Emmylou's dad when he died at 93.



Many of the songs do have an intellectual bent and though you put some thought into them, their feeling and power hit you like a freight train. They can leave you waundering in the night.



Red Dirt Girl is a straight-forward story of a life turned tragic. Emmylou wrote it on the way to record Tragedy in New Orleans. (Does anyone other than Willie Nelson record at Emmylou's house?) The Boy From Tupelo is a more light rock/pop sounding ditty. I heard it first at Starbucks and that's why I bought the CD.



There is so much beauty and depth to these songs. It's worth the buy. I think is is an exceptionally strong piece of work.

Muffled Sound Quality

I bought Red Dirt Girl shortly after it was released because I had heard the title track on a review and liked the words. I was very disappointed when I tried to listen to the CD. The music sounds so muffled. I thought there was something wrong with my copy of the CD until I read the comments of a couple of other reviewers who have had the same experience. I rarely listen to this CD, even though I do like some of the songs, because of the poor quality of the recording; it simply gets on my nerves.

Red Dirt Angel

I have loved Emmy Lou's work from the start. When I bought this release it took my breath away. How can a human voice demonstrate such emotion and control at the same time? Whenever I listen to this CD tears are brought to my eyes because of the beauty of Emmy Lou. There are different levels of beauty in this CD. The first is her angelic voice. On this release especially, one can get a glimpse into what heaven's angels desire to sound like. The second beauty is that of the lyrics and the phrasing of those words into cohesive thought. The third beauty that can be found is the masterful mixing and production of the record. I have never heard a more lovely recording. The forth level of beauty is the maturity of Emmy Lou's musical approach. Unlike many of her contemporaries, she continues not only to find new ground but create something unexpected. I would have to rate this release as Her finest work to date. Five stars are not enough; the Milky Way would be more appropriate.