Other Voices, Other Rooms

1	Across the Great Divide 3:57
2	Woman of the Phoenix 2:41
3	Tecumseh Valley 4:29
4	Three Flights Up 3:31
5	Boots of Spanish Leather 5:17
6	Speed of the Sound of Loneliness 4:20
7	From Clare to Here 5:11
8	Can't Help But Wonder Where I'm Bound 3:16
9	Do-Re-Mi 2:52
10	This Old Town 3:00
11	Comin' Down in the Rain 3:45
12	Ten Degrees and Getting Colder 2:40
13	Morning Song for Sally 4:55
14	Night Rider's Lament 3:57
15	Are You Tired of Me Darling 3:11
16	Turn Around 3:19
17	Wimoweh 1:47

Barnes & Noble

Nanci Griffith's masterpiece is rooted in an honorable concept: It's a salute to the songwriters who influenced her. But picking your favorite songs and then having some of your favorite artists accompany you is easier conceived than executed, owing to the vagaries of scheduling and individual agendas. Fortunately, Griffith draws aces with every move here, creating, in her own words, "A full-grown family tree of songs, writers, and voices." The late Kate Wolf is lovingly honored by Griffith and Emmylou Harris on "Across the Great Divide," setting a high standard that never lags. The late Townes Van Zandt is saluted by a duet with Arlo Guthrie on "Tecumseh Valley." Legends Bob Dylan and John Prine both appear on their respective songs, "Boots of Spanish Leather" and "Speed of the Sound of Loneliness," with the latter being especially potent, mainly due to Griffith's ease in adapting her smooth Texas drawl to such a rich song. As this salute to her folk idols continues, Griffith's concept retains its clarity and vigor, bridging the shores of folk and country. Rob Bleetstein

All Music Guide

Nanci Griffith has the kind of beguiling singing voice that's effortless and easily beautiful -- like a pretty girl who doesn't ever need makeup to be radiant. Sounding a little bit like Emmylou Harris is never a bad thing, but Griffith doesn't stop there. She duets with Harris and a host of other country and folk notables on Other Voices, Other Rooms, her first collection of cover songs. Like Harris, Griffith can climb inside a character-driven song with a simple twist of inflection or a lingering note. This is what she does on Vince Bell's "Woman of the Phoenix," deftly painting images of a winter freeze, cacti, and Michael, the "rock 'n' roll hood from the Odessa plains." Dylan's "Boots of Spanish Leather" rambles like the Texas countryside and features the man himself on harmonica. The guest list for Other Voices really is incredible. Alison Krauss, John Gorka, Edgar Meyer, Amy Ray, and Emily Saliers -- it's a regular homespun who's who. There's plenty to sigh about here, and occasionally the album can almost be too tasteful for its own good. But raveups like Woody Guthrie's "Do-Re-Mi" let Griffith trade some serenity for dustbowl grit (the addition of John Prine's lascivious gruffness helps a lot, too), and the frustrated anger of "This Old Town" only supports this. What might be most refreshing about Other Voices, Other Rooms is its ability to access the warm tones of country, grassroots, 1960s folk, and the '70s songwriting tradition while still sounding more like it comes from Griffith's Texas roots than anywhere else. This is highly recommended for fans of Griffith or any of the like-minded artists who help out here. Johnny Loftus