Disciples of Sound | "Bonnie Whitmore’s Lush Last Will And Testament"
Bonnie Whitmore has played bass for the last 20 years with some of the biggest artists in “Americana”: Hayes Carll, John Moreland, Eliza Gilkyson, Sunny Sweeney, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, and Butch Hancock, to name a few. She’s also maintained a weekly residency at the legendary Continental Club Gallery in Austin, where she lives. That experience seems to have driven the creative process behind her sophomore release Last Will and Testament. Here Whitmore has turned a corner that may just catapult her forward and make her as well-known as some of folks she has supported on stage.
As a singer her vocals are truly bewitching. Her voice and her material remind me quite a bit of Mavericks front man Raul Malo. Like him Whitmore demonstrates remarkable control ushering in songs about heady topics like loss and the great American divide that are styled but not glossy. It’s been said that she instead seems to introduce topics like a casual conversation set against a musical arrangement that’s quite spellbinding. Like the Mavericks her approach to music is more of a modern day retro. There are 60’s sound elements that tap into the country, AM pop, and Memphis music of that moment. Here she shares a kind of kinship with Shelby Lynn in her ability to bring forward a soulfulness that’s reminiscent of some of classic country’s best songstresses. This is particularly true on the brilliant “None Of My Business”.
The record opens with a title track that legitimately sounds like the theme song from a James Bond film. It sets the table for what amounts to a real novel ride down roads of Nashville's past.
Whitmore co-produced the record with Scott Davis, who also co-wrote one of the album’s standout tracks, “Right/Wrong”. They recorded at Ramble Creek Studio in Austin with engineer Britton Biesenherz. Craig Bagby (drums), Trevor Nealon (keys), and BettySoo (backing vocals, accordion), all members of Whitmore’s band the Sad Girls, are fixtures throughout the record.
Look for its release in early October.