Patty Larkin
Perishable Fruit
High Street Records

I can't remember how long I've been listening to Patty Larkin. Long enough to know that her music is fantastic on several levels. Perishable Fruit offers great sound and thought-provoking lyrics. The opening track "The Road" is a fast-paced intro to Patty's style. Her voice is smooth, but her inflections travel from peaceful to bitter to tongue-in-cheek. "The Road" gives us a taste of instruments to come, too. Aside from guitar and vocals, she's got mandolin, bazouki, hammered dulcimer and something called a tiple, which I'm still trying to identify.

Did I mention that this woman can really play guitar? There are very few artists whose playing strikes me as much as their voice or lyrics, but she's definitely one.

If you listen to public radio you may have heard "The Book I'm Not Reading." It's a clever ditty with so many subtle messages it would take an entire magazine to explore them all. With lyrics like

"The book I'm not reading is riveting
The book I'm not reading keeps me up at night
The book I'm not reading is better than TV,
Giving me insight,"

I feel like dropping whatever I'm doing and running to the library (which reminds me, I think my books are overdue. Damn.)

The other song given public radio airplay is "Wolf At The Door," a scathing song that could be re-named "Attitudes Of The Rich And Famous."

There is a gentle side to this CD, and to Patty as well, as shown in songs like "Coming Up For Air" and "You And Me." "Rear View Mirror" cries of betrayal, and "Red Accordion" reminds us -- whether good or bad, life is what we make it.

If great vocals, instruments, lyrics and overall sound are what you're looking for, buy Patty Larkin. If not, may I suggest top 40?
-KR

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