Long Prairie – By Sunrise
A little bluegrass/country in the Loretta Lynn & Tammy Wynette tradition with a dash of what sounds like Appalachian spirit. While Long Prairie’s vocals & instrumentation are sincere & played with assurance — the production could’ve been recorded with a little more presence. Long Prairie is Paula Marie Aubert (vocals/acoustic guitar/harmony) a Texas-based singer-songwriter who chose her identity in homage to the same-named Minnesota town near her birthplace.
The 10-track album By Sunrise (Drops Oct 4/Independent/30:21) produced by Omar Vallejo (acoustic & electric bass/tenor electric guitar/synth/harmony) was recorded in San Marcos, TX at 512 Studios.
While most of the repertoire is fairly basic with no outlaw detours or showboating vocal gymnastics, Long Prairie’s lower register is often compelling as sampled on “The Roses,” because her voice sounds more mature, experienced & authoritative. The Duane Eddy-type guitar adds much country purity that isn’t as evident in many of today’s pop-country showcases. However, the song needs a lift & which could come with backup singers to accentuate keywords. The song while being good would rise to another level. The song presently has just Long Prairie’s voice & no backup to add color & depth to the arrangement.
“Hill Country Storm” is an upbeat outing with fiddle sawing that adds a nice coating to the melody. The song has lots of rural poignancy, the smell of a spring rain & lavender. Long Prairie’s voice is enthusiastic & pushes the upper boundaries of her range & keeps the song entertaining throughout.
The title track is the most distinguished. “By Sunrise,” is sung with a formidable voice & with little instrumentational fanfare. There’s an easy-going ambiance & Long Prairie applies her vocal skills admirably.
Fortunately, the songs don’t suffer from an overabundance of cliches or campiness. The authenticity is rich in these compositions & not all country music has to come with rock guitar flair & maniac fiddles & banjos.
Highlights – “The Roses,” “Hill Country Storm” & “By Sunrise.”
Musicians – Hayden Vitera (electric fiddle/cello/mandolin/piano/ganjo) & Rich Baur (percussion).
An insert describing each song is fugitive glued into the CD. Color image courtesy of Nicola Gell Photography. CD @ https://www.longprairiemusic.com/
Song Premiere: https://americanahighways.org/2024/09/16/song-premiere-long-prairie-seamlessly/