Tomorrow Is My Turn Rhiannon Giddens

• 1 Last Kind Words 04:14
• 2 Don't Let It Trouble Your Mind 03:40
• 3 Waterboy 03:45
• 4 She's Got You 04:17
• 5 Up Above My Head 03:10
• 6 Tomorrow is My Turn 04:37
• 7 Black Is the Color 03:46
• 8 Round About the Mountain 03:30
• 9 Shake Sugaree 04:24
• 10 O Love Is Teasin' 04:33
• 11 Angel City 03:53
• Total Runtime 43:49

Info for Tomorrow Is My Turn

Anyone familiar with the predominantly rustic, down home approach of Rhiannon Giddens’ full time outfit, the Carolina Chocolate Drops, won’t be surprised that she stays true to her influences on her first solo venture. Recent associations with T Bone Burnett included her vocals on Lost on the River, the collection of new music added to Bob Dylan’s leftover lyrics from his basement tapes era. Burnett then assembled many of his go-to team of musicians to back Giddens on this vibrant set of traditional and classic country, jazz, gospel and blues covers, all written, or made famous, by women.

With Burnett involved, there’s no question that this is authentic. But it’s to Giddens’ credit that her interpretations aren’t stuffy, and in some cases not all that retro. Musically, the wide ranging material includes a prison work song (“Waterboy,” made popular by Odetta), country classics (the Patsy Cline arrangement of Hank Cochran’s “She’s Got You”), church music (Sister Rosetta Tharpe’s “Up Above my Head”) and traditionals such as “Black is the Color.” Those concerned that this is a stale history lesson can relax; Giddens even rearranges the latter tune to include funky percussion that meshes subtly with the earthier harmonica and tambourine accompaniment.

But it’s Giddens’ golden, soulful voice that is the real attraction. She treats these songs respectfully but not overly so, allowing her own style to emerge in the process. No matter how often you’ve heard the oft recorded folksong “Shake Sugaree,” Giddens’ brings a mellow sweetness to this acoustic version that makes hers one of the songs’ best interpretations to date. The album was initially inspired by the singer watching a video of Nina Simone performing the title track, a French tune with lyrics that detail overcoming strife in life. Ultimately, most of this material concerns variations of that concept, including the bittersweet closing “Angel City,” the disc’s only original composition.

The combination of Burnett’s characteristically genuine, acoustic based production, Giddens’ sumptuous voice and a conceptual set list that never feels musty, yields a wonderful album whose restrained pleasures reveal themselves gradually over repeated playings. While she may not be ready to leave the Chocolate Drops just yet, Giddens’ shows she can parlay her talents into a viable career whenever she’s ready.“ (Hal Horowitz, American Songwriter)

Rhiannon Giddens
Singer and multi-instrumentalist Rhiannon Giddens is best known as the frontwoman of African-American string band the Carolina Chocolate Drops, whose 2010 album Genuine Negro Jig earned them a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk Album. Raised in Piedmont, North Carolina, Giddens studied opera at the Oberlin Conservatory before relocating back home, where she became immersed in the rural musical traditions of that region.

A chance meeting with future bandmates Justin Robinson and Dom Flemons at the 2005 Black Banjo Gathering in Boone, North Carolina resulted in the formation of their first folk project, Sankofa Strings. Originally an outlet to perform various early African-American musical styles like blues, country, hot string jazz, and Caribbean, the bandmembers ended up learning much of their early repertoire from legendary old-time fiddler Joe Thompson. Adopting the name the Carolina Chocolate Drops, the group released four eclectic and well-respected albums before signing with Nonesuch Records to release its wildly successful 2010 breakthrough album. Following the success of Genuine Negro Jig, the band continued to tour and record with an ever-evolving lineup that remained centered around Giddens' powerful vocals and fiddle/banjo playing.

Drafted by producer T-Bone Burnett to perform solo at the 2013 Another Day, Another Time concert (celebrating the musical era of the film Inside Llewyn Davis) in New York, she gave a show-stopping performance of the Odetta classic "Waterboy," which was widely considered the highlight of the evening. Just a few months later in early 2014, she again worked with Burnett on the collaborative New Basement Tapes recording project, which featured Elvis Costello, Jim James (My Morning Jacket), Marcus Mumford (Mumford & Sons), and Taylor Goldsmith (Dawes) writing new music to recently discovered Bob Dylan lyrics.

Her own Burnett-produced solo debut, Tomorrow Is My Turn, was released a year later in February 2015.

Booklet for Tomorrow Is My Turn