POP/ROCK: Rosie Thomas, "With Love" (Sing-A-Long)
Love changes everything. And so does recovering from a debilitating illness. Michigan-bred singer-songwriter Thomas bounces back from a serious thyroid disorder with her first full-length release in four years. Thomas also got married in the interim, and her new release is unapologetically romantic -- lending authenticity to "With Love's" collection of material about relationships.
Yet even if there are fictional elements to the release, Thomas sells it with a clean vocal, bright melodies and uncomplicated arrangements. The simpler the better: Her singing flows on the rolling bass of "Is This Love" as she teeters between naivete and obsessiveness, and the understated "Over the Moon" charms with open-hearted lines. Thomas also shines in the idyllic nostalgia of the folkie tracks "2 Birds" and "A Really Long Year."
However, darkness edges her most captivating track, "Like Wildflowers," as she sings, "I wish I could learn from the flowers and the ferns how to take things as they come/And how will I grow from here?"
In general, Thomas is a tad less convincing in downcast mode, as when she holds out hope that someone who never listens to her will change on "In Time." Still, positivity is the norm for "With Love," echoed in the infectious piano-ballad closer, "Sometimes Love," where Thomas spells out her philosophy of love: "When it comes, don't try to fight it." She didn't, and we're all the better for it.
Thomas performs Friday at the Turf Club in St. Paul. -CHUCK CAMPBELL, SCRIPPS HOWARD NEWS SERVICE
POP/ROCK: Chuck Prophet, "Temple Beautiful" (Yep Roc)
Prophet bills his new album as an ode to his adopted hometown of San Francisco. The Bay Area references are obvious in numbers such as "Willie Mays Is Up at Bat," which names not only the Say-Hey Kid, but also other noted and notorious San Franciscans, such as stripper Carol Doda, promoter Bill Graham and Jim Jones of the People's Temple. On most other tracks, however, like the fratricidal tale of the porn-purveying Mitchell Brothers ("The Left Hand and the Right Hand"), the San Fran connections are not so clear.
