It’s refreshing to hear a new British talent like Beth Rowley seriously take on the blues, and come up smelling roses. Looking at her photograph, you’d think she was another Universal ‘pop princess’ with her frazzled blond locks and sweet looks. But no, because here is a young lady with a distinctive and smooth voice suited eminently suited to singing the blues (and probably anything else she chose to poke a stick at). But it’s not that she can sing the blues, it’s how well she can sing them.

Opener ‘Nobody’s Fault But Mine’ is a tradition al blues song arranged superbly by Rowley. With just a double bass initially behind the vocal, Rowley’s voice crawls along in perfect harmony with the song’s vibe and sentiments. The song builds with Hammond, drums, guitars and wonderful backing vocals joining in to nail a fantastic song and performance. Next track ‘Sweet Hours’ has a beautifully judged piano backdrop and is a song with a distinctive jazz vibe. Rowley’s voice is given more scope to travel the scale and comes up trumps. Interestingly, she also wrote the song exhibiting genuine singer/songwriter talent. The third song on this excellent EP is also written by Rowley’ and this time is firmly down the blues road. There’s a strong melody, a downbeat vibe, wonderful instrumental arrangement, and at this point I’m thinking this young lady is a very special talent indeed. Finally there’s a so-so cover of Bob Dylan’s ‘I Shall Be Released’ which is bestowed with a pop vibe which doesn’t really suit it. But it’s just a small blemish on an EP that points to a young lady who is capable of carving out a special niche in the UK music market. From the accompanying notes I understand she will be touring next year, so I will be booking my passage early and looking forward to the experience.

4/5