Sheryl Crow – Tuesday Night Music Club (1993)
Sheryl started off singing advertising jingles and became a background session singer, touring with Michael Jackson on his ‘Bad’ tour. She recorded a debut album in 92, but was unhappy with the polished production and refused to release it. About a year later she joined a loose group of musicians known to themselves as the Tuesday Music Club. These musicians became the basis for her debut album with most of the group contributing to both the songwriting and the recording. Although a slow burner the album took off after the single ‘All I Wanna Do’. It received rave reviews and I bought it. The songs are all brilliant, catchy and very well produced; they are a mixture of Americana and Soft Rock – but Sheryl’s voice is strong and expressive; she sounds as if these are very personal. The album went on to sell 7 million copies and established her as a major American star. She has carried on recording, though I only have her first three albums – as there has been a creeping sameness in both her singing and the songs. Still, this record holds its own as a classic’ my faves are ‘Leaving Las Vegas’ and ‘No One Said It Would Be Easy.’