Jennifer Lyn & the Groove Revival Electric Eden
Well, Ms. Jennifer Lyn certainly doesn’t have a thin voice. She’s not growly like Janis Joplin or nuclear-powered like Candy Givens (Zephyr’s “Sail On”) & Lydia Pense (Cold Blood), but she’s a bit more vocally attractive than Brenda Patterson. What she has is a voice somewhere between Genya Ravan (Ten Wheel Drive) & Karen Lawrence (Blue By Nature). Definitely a warmer blues tone, but with all the necessary wattage to lift her songs off the ground.
This 9-track Electric Eden (Drops May 8/J&R Collective/34:54) is a live LP recorded in Bismarck, ND. The production is pristine. It captured the performance with the quality of a studio recording. The opener is a good scorcher, but the creativity begins to spill generously from the speakers on “Light the Fire/When the Levee Breaks,” where Jennifer shines with an authoritative vocal & the combination of a Memphis Minnie tune with Led Zeppelin is a good selling point & they do sell it.
However, “White Rabbit,” while played formidably, doesn’t have the mystery, attitude & proper lyrical pronunciation vocally that Grace Slick & Jefferson Airplane painted. This is a bit more watercolor, where the song was originally an oil painting. Sorry. Just doesn’t work for old ears. On track, though, is Jennifer (guitar/vocals) as she slides into a splendid “Lay Your Memory Down.” Here her blues voice is smokier, determined, & the “feeling” she conveys through the lyrics is all whiskey & sawdust. Excellent intonation & it just seems as if she found herself where “White Rabbit” went down the rabbit hole.
Jennifer takes “Sucker For the Pain” into a jauntier gear with steamy barrelhouse piano — another jewel in her blues crown. This is exciting stuff. Jennifer glows like radium as the band plays ambitiously with energy & skill. “Nothing Holds Me Down” is a good entry. Great arrangement with another guitar solo. Everything drops back into a bluesier drip with a terrific hi-hat beat (great decision, drummer, great). It’s laid back but powerful.
Nothing’s as truly bluesy as Bessie Smith, Big Mama Thornton, or Ma Rainey, but it’s 2026 & Ms. Lyn has enough nuts & bolts to fill the ears with tough love. Save “’59 Cadillac” – those words should be sung with more sarcastic sting to be blues effective. It’s the arrangement that needs a tweak. Too assertive & funky. Words don’t represent that. Sing it like a blues veteran who wears scars, not perfume.
Highlights – “Breaking Chains,” “Light the Fire/When the Levee Breaks,” “Lay Your Memory Down,” “Sucker For the Pain” & “Nothing Holds Me Down.”
Musicians – Richard Torrance (guitar/vocals), Jim Anderson (drums/vocals), Barb Jiskra (keys) & Nolyn Falcon (bass) with Jaxon Fitterer (guitar).
Color image courtesy of their Facebook site. CD @ https://jlynandthegrooverevival.com/electric-eden-pre-order/