Walls & Windows

What always never ceases to amaze me is how one of the greatest singers on the face of this planet always seems to go so unknown and so underappreciated. One is bombarded every day with junk trivia and worthless patter about Britney and Jessica and Janet and Madonna and a full boatload of other popular "hottie" singer/gyraters who have a decent level of talent and are, in fact, entertaining---yet whose appeal is really largely based on video production expertise, studio production wizardry, professionally coached dance choreography,
aerobically honed (and often surgically enhanced) superbodies, road show audio-visual effects, and big-budget Record Company promotional marketing.
Maura O'Connell is about none of these things. Maura O'Connell is a big-boned, stocky, red-headed, Catholic Irishwoman
with a strong, pretty, intelligent face and soul-reflecting eyes.
She looks to be of what the "gentry" used to patronizingly refer to as a "peasant" type, but the fact of the matter is...this woman is nothing but CLASS, through and through. She may not be the kind of nubile twitch performer that Britney is, but anyone who has ever heard Maura O'Connell sing knows that, when it comes to a real vocal performance, Irish Red can blow Britney and all her glitz-sisters right off the stage.
The voice is amazing. Once heard it is not forgotten. It is powerful...it is delicate. It is throaty and bold...it is whispery and gentle and relective. It is a folk voice, it is a
jazz voice, it is a blues voice, it is a country & western voice, it is a rock voice, it is a pop voice. It is a soul voice.
The Maura O'Connell voice is a SINGER'S voice, and it is whatever it needs to be to interpret the songwriter's material most effectively.
A friend of mine said to me the other day, "Y'know,Maura O'Connell sounds a lot like Nora Jones." I politely disagreed.
"No," I replied. "Nora Jones sounds like Maura O'Connell...the way Maura sounds SOMETIMES".
The best way to appreciate what I'm saying here is to listen to an O'Connell CD...and "Walls And Windows" is a fine example of what I mean. The song treatments here range from wistful to exuberant, hitting all points in between. "Walls" is a beautiful song, "Every River" jaunty and fun, "Crazy Love" an awesome cover of the Van Morrison classic. John Prine's "Sleepy Eyed Boy" is utterly captivating done by Maura, as is Eric clapton's "I Get Lost". Truth is, there isn't a klunker on this recording. not a one. And that is really pretty much typical of the entire O'Connell discography. The woman just doesn't MAKE bad records.
I first encountered her in concert with Nashville musicians
Jerry Douglas, Russ Barenberger, Edgar Meyer, and Sam Bush several years ago, performing as "The Acoustic Giants", and was knocked out by her singing. Have been a serious admirer of her work ever since. Adore albums like "Helpless Heart", "Blue Is the Color of Hope", "A Real Life Story" and others. This woman's talent is just awesome. She is up there in a class with Aretha Franklin, Patsy Cline, Kate Smith, Rosemary Clooney, Julie London, Whitney Houston, Peggy Lee, Cass Elliott, Janis Joplin,and all the other Big League Lady Singers....and I'm not blowing smoke on you, either, friend.
Don't believe me? Give a listen. You'll soon change your mind.

I received this CD as a gift from a friend. I am not a very musical person myself, but I really enjoy listening to all kinds of music. My friend thought I would like this because I am of Irish decent. When I first listened to this CD I was blown away. I put on in the car on my way home a did not turn it off until it was over. I sat in my driveway until I had listened to every song. There are a lot of really good singers, but when you listen to Maura O'Connell she is able to pull you into the story behind the music. You feel as if you are living what she is singing. Last month in Nashville at the Bluebird Cafe I was able to see her live and to meet her after. She is as nice and sweet a person as she is a wonderful singer. I just ordered 4 more of her CDs. I will be a fan for life.

There is just no two ways about it -- Maura O'Connell is one of the handful of the very best singers around in ANY genre, and she proves it once again in the solid, nearly flawless recording of first rate songs

With a slightly rootsier feel than some previous albums by O'Connell (she was inspired by Lucinda Williams' Americana classic "Car Wheels on a Gravel Road") it might be tempting to approach this album with a bit a caution, but there is no need for that. What we have here is a set of one dozen excellent songs and all of them are beautifully sung and tastefully produced -- in short another typically excellent Maura O'Connell album!