Book of Days

Album Review

The strong, clear, pure voice of Iowa-based Susan Shore is the dominant instrument on this disc, sometimes exuding warmth and compassion, at other times almost overpowering the lyrics and taking over the song. She writes finely crafted songs that might be best fitted into the singer/songwriter or country-folk genres. Her unusual arrangements sometimes use the instruments as a counterpoint to the melody; Shore also wrote seven of the 12 songs on the disc. The backing musicians do a good job with the music, and there is some very fine bass playing by Marty Christensen. Highlights include a duet with Al Day on "Frank & Red" and the Shore original "Alive."