KT Tunstall

I’ve told you previously that music plays an important part in my life and always has.  This is a music post, so those of you looking for Civil War stuff won’t find it here.

I’ve also lamented the apparent lack of musical talent in many of today’s popular acts.  Finally, there’s been the “bimboizing” of pop music with the proliferation of air headed morons like Britney Spears and Jessica Simpson, both of whom appear to have the overwhelming majority of their talent in their bras.  Most recently, the ultimate air headed bimbo, Paris Hilton, has released an album, as somebody persuaded her that (a) she can sing and (b) anyone gives a damn. 

To borrow a line once used to describe Bruce Springsteen, I have seen the future, and her name is KT Tunstall.

I am one of those people who can’t concentrate in a silent room.  Consequently, I listen to the radio streaming via the web all day while at work.  On a visit to Susan’s brother a couple of years ago, I discovered KFOG, a terrific Bay Area station.  I was even more pleased to find that KFOG streams on the web, so I listen to it pretty much all day (although there are times when I listen to Jimmy Buffett’s Radio Margaritaville). 

Back in January, KFOG started playing a song called “Big Black Horse and a Cherry Tree” by some unknown singer.  I really liked the song, so I started paying attention.  The artist who wrote and performed it is named KT Tunstall.  Since then, her first album was released in the U. S., and a second song, titled “Suddenly I See” was released as a single, and has gotten a lot of airplay.  It was the song played during the opening scenes of the recent movie The Devil Wears Prada. 

KT is from Scotland.  She plays the guitar, the piano, and the drums.  She’s been known to be a one-woman band–her performance on the Today show back in the early spring proved that. She writes all of her own stuff, and she can REALLY sing.  Imagine Sheryl Crow with a Scots accent and a big attitude, and you get a very good idea of what we’re talking about here.

Susan and I went to see her in concert  last night.  It’s her first true U. S. tour, and she played in a real dump.  However, we were there for the music and not for the venue.  And let me tell you–I can’t say enough good things about her or her performance.  She played four different guitars over the course of the show, including a beautiful Les Paul that was as big as she is, the piano, and the drums.  She has a fabulous band behind her–her bass player also played the cello on a couple of songs, and it was a great show.

For me, a real indicator of how good a performer is is whether they sound as good live as they do in the studio–and no, I don’t mean lipsynching like Ashlee Simpson, either–and KT sounds EXACTLY the same live as she does in the studio, meaning that her voice is that good that she requires no mixing.  It was very impressive.  She did several songs from her new upcoming acoustic album, and they were all terrific.  She told the crowd that the entire album was recorded in a single day, which is quite impressive.

She is the anti-Britney, to say the very least.  I just can’t say enough good things about her and her music.  If you get the chance to enjoy her and her music, please indulge yourself.  You won’t be disappointed.