Search - Anne Harris :: Anne Harris

Anne?s self-titled debut CD has been enthusiastically received since its June 2001 release on her Rugged Road label. Her expressive melodies and lyrics, sensual vocals and unique fiddle stylings, along with guitars and bass, are folded in textured layers of African flavored percussion. The result is an earthy, organic blend that draws from varied American, traditional, and global influences and rhythms. The songs, all penned by Anne, traverse a meandering path over varied lyrical and musical terrain, with the path itself, rather than the destination, defining the continuity of the work. On "Good For It," the opening track, a misty Middle Eastern-flavored intro weaves into a soulful lyrical appeal to higher love and a spirited instrumental bridge. A masterful layer of rhythm and percussion and interpretive guitar work provide the common thread for this beautiful tapestry. Further along the path we come to a meadow, where the lively Celtic-influenced instrumental ch! orus of "Dandelion" dances around picturesque lyrics which remind us that love, however fleeting, changes us for life. From the hopeful yearning and haunting violin strains of "Someday" to the upbeat Caribbean lilt and teasing, tongue-in-cheek lyrics of "I Think I Got You," the songs are as distinct from one another as a forest and a lake, and yet juxtapose just as scenically. In the rhythmically driven "Where?s the Girl," the hopes and dreams of yesterday?s small town girl are crowded out by a tomorrow that came too soon, while the autobiographical "Leaves Turnin?," delivers a poignant and uplifting metaphor about the spiraling continuity of life by singing praise of the ever-present love, wisdom and pride that Anne feels from her late grandparents. Both songs face, from different angles, a central theme that life, all life, goes on.