CANDYE KANE "SISTER VAGABOND" Source: Music News Nashville Date: 09/2011 Writer: Dan Harr

Candye Kane "Sister Vagabond"

You've got to love the spunk and fire of LA blues singer Candye Kane. Sounding strong after her victorious battle with pancreatic cancer, she's a 250-shows-a-year road hog with a roots style that doesn't wallow in woe-is-me, leaving her audiences with positive messages of self-belief.

Kane's live performances are legendary – a mix of burlesque, Memphis blues and retro pop, where the self-described "fat, black drag queen trapped in a white woman's body" states her case as a champion of the underdog.

"Sister Vagabond" is her second album on the Delta Groove Music label. Produced by the artist and her killer guitarist Laura Chavez, it's her eleventh career record, and features nine out of thirteen tracks written by these collaborators. Clearly, a vibrant, palpable chemistry exists between these two. Theirs is a symbiotic relationship where they feed off of each other's artistry and confidence, together producing a unique brand of joyful, earthy blues.

A cover of Brenda Lee's "Sweet Nothin's" is sung with growl and bite, and Kane's power wails are matched by Chavez's bleeding electric guitar riffs on their "Walkin', Talkin' Haunted House." Blending something old with something new creates a healthy dynamic – early '60s girls-group pop and a boat load of brass here, and jumpy Cajun accordion there. Kane can be the big belter on one track, then playful and coquettish on the next.

Production has a T Bone Burnett throw-back feel that suits the singer well, and listeners will walk away from the experience knowing that roots music will never be the same again. Kane's body of work is a little like streaks and splashes of sunset pinks and oranges on the blues' vast horizon.