Live at the Towpath Inn

Album Review

Halley DeVestern's unique voice is captured in concert — not at "The Towpath Inn," but live at New York City's the Lounge and as part of a Waltham, MA, radio station's legendary broadcast series, "The Joint," sponsored by Brandeis University's WBRS. The ten tracks go back and forth, "I'm Dead Today" starts the CD off from New York gig, "They Ain't Got the Ways" from Brandeis, while Rima Fand's violin keeps a consistency to the proceedings making the transitions somewhat smooth. For fans of DeVestern, and she's building quite a following in the Northeast as Elaine McEllwaine did back in the '70s, this album is a treat. It's a wonderful artistic statement, but not as powerful as her studio recordings on Sugar Free, and without the fury unleashed when she performs with Big Brother & the Holding Company. As Darby Gould brought songs to the Jefferson Starship from her previous major-label work, Halley DeVestern's "I'll Light Myself on Fire" is the first new performance from Big Brother & the Holding Company that has mattered since their two final albums sans Janis on Columbia — and that important title is conspicuous in its absence. Sure, "Superhero Killer" is an amazing song, and Halley's identifiable voice is wonderful with the congas and violin, the limited range of equipment at a New York nightclub — where this was recorded (or a college radio station for that matter — where "Scary" is culled from) adds a charm while it inhibits fidelity. As Janis Joplin's famous "typewriter tapes" with Jorma Kaukonen are legend and added depth to the first Janis Joplin box, this ten-song CD will be a treasure after Halley DeVestern achieves the level of success that her talent deserves. Another question is, if an emerging artist is going to go out on a limb releasing concert material, why is there about 42 minutes when the CD could have been enhanced greatly with an interview segment or more from the performances? The cover of the Virgin Mary playing guitar during The Ascension goes nicely with the lyrics of "Tied," the final of the four tunes from The Lounge. "Oh honey your blood is going to taste so nice...so wherever you are baby, you'd better start to pray...." The lyrics then become unintelligible; it sounds like she's saying, "you're going to hell a hundred times...." Real good rock & roll that makes you wonder what she's really saying — the energy from both Jim Shea's percussion and Rima Fand's violin give DeVestern a nice platform that is the other side of the explosion made by Big Brother & the Holding Company. "Strangled in the Park": "I'll always be in the eternity business" she sings. "Animal," "Ring of Love," and "I'm Over It" fill out the CD. It's amazing what one woman can do with a guitar, some friends, and minimal recording, but for an artist of Halley DeVestern's potential, the follow-up to her excellent debut should have had many of her famous friends lending a hand.