I was made to sing like a lemon tree was made to make lemons-k.d.lang
k.d. lang has always had an amazing voice, but she has never really fit in with the rest of the big haired Country Western Women Singers. So she is no longer listed as Country, but as Alternative, or Alt-Country. Shadowland has a country feel in places, but really, since they let Lee Greenwood call himself a Country singer, there hasn’t been any real Country Music.
So k.d. lang’s mix of country and soft jazz is very good stuff. Like Boy George and Mick Jagger, k.d. lang was made for listening to and not for looking at. I remember some C&W show where they had k.d. lang march out on stage with the likes of Loretta Lynn and Tammy Wynette-they were in the standard issue rhinestone dresses and big hair, k.d. lang was wearing a black suit and her usual crew cut. One of these things is not like the others.
I like the cover to Shadowland, a bit of old Hollywood glamor photography with a lot of shadows and strong lines. A lot of the songs hark back to the 40s and 50s as well. This may have something to do with the time she has spent with Tony Bennett. Tony was going to be the next big star when the Beatles showed up and pushed him to the shadows, but he seems to have recovered. Tony Bennett and k.d. lang recorded A Wonderful World in 2002.
I think k.d. lang and Josh Turner should get together and do an album. Josh Turner has one of the most amazing voice I have heard in a long time, but he has recorded the worst music. His one hit was Long, Black Train, about the devil and sinner repent or fare thee well. But I still have hopes for him, I think k.d. lang’s voice would a good match with his, and she could write the songs and it would very interesting. Of course, the odds of these two ever cutting an album are slim. It would just be fun to have these two amazing voices sing together.
Anyway, k.d. lang’s Shadowland is great stuff. But really, she could just read the phonebook and it would sound amazing. She is a great talent. I liked Shadowland a lot.
