A Review of the CD
"The Truth of a Woman"
by Kristina Olsen

This review is written by Kevin McCarthy, 2/00
"Kevin and Maxine’s Celtic & Folk Music CD Reviews"
http://www.icogitate.com/~celticfolkmusic/index.html
mailto:celticfolkmusic@icogitate.com

Alternating between blues numbers and more standard folkish cuts, Kristina Olsen's latest release primarily focuses on less-than-satisfying relationships and lost love. However, the two absolutely standout songs here, the tender and insightful "The Truth of a Woman" and the ultimately triumphant ballad "The Yellow Piper," curiously do not follow this mold.

Peter Grayling's dreamy cello enhances the effect of "The Truth of a Woman," a subtle but powerful blending of the grace of the female body along with an artistic rendering of womankind. Olsen, leading on guitar, sings:

"Draw a line that is her breast
Show the way she holds her weight
Charcoal has a dusty smell
As it's etched upon the page

Take the time to see her jaw
Feel the bite beneath the skin
Teeth and muscle and bone create
The stillness of her chin

It isn't how your hand moves
It's how you see
It isn't the grade of the pencil
It's the line it leaves
How your eyes trace
Her body's solid grace
That is the truth of a woman

How the hip begets a thigh
Is the finest kind of spell
Let your eye become your hand
As you stroke her belly's swell

It isn't how her heart beats
It's the way it pulls the skin
It isn't just the curve of a sigh
That does you in
The scratchy sound her hair makes
As you draw that place
That is the truth of a woman"

"...The day I got my license I took the final test
And barnstormed our own farmhouse again and again
When I came home later that day my kids all shouted out
Aw mom you should have been here this crazy plane was flying all around
And mom it came so close we saw our wheat reflected in its wings
And Dad said if only you would stay here more you'd get to see these things
Without a word I threw my license down so they could see
Who their wife and mother was this woman that is me

The kids were full of disbelief but wanted to hear more
My husband on the other hand slammed the kitchen door
He wouldn't speak to me for weeks but it wasn't what I thought
He was angry I wouldn't trust him to let him know my heart

My husband bought me my own plane he said it's cheaper than divorce
And I started a business dusting crops we could use the cash of course
He's not a big talker that man, but it's okay with me
He lets me be who I am, the rest is history

And it is through the clouds I fly
And I am through living out a lie
I can fly"

"This young man is like a circus
But he thinks he is a stallion
With a herd of mares to control
But he is just a three ring show
And while he exercises his freedom
He's thinking of the girl back home
He's missing his girl back home
She twists the ring on her finger
She twists it three times round
And she wishes he was home
He wishes he was home
There's a whole lot of wishing going on
And the stallion runs circles round the ring
And the ring is a circle on her hand
And that's just how it is between this woman and this man

This young woman is like a mail box
But she thinks she is the whole world
The moon spins around her each day
And she just sends mail on its way
And while her belly is full of love letters
She thinks of what he'll say
When he comes in real late
She twists the ring on her finger
She twists it three times round
And she wonders why he strayed
And he wonders why he stayed
There's a whole lot of wondering going on
And the stallion's eyes reflect the moon
And the moon reflects the ring on her hand
And that's just how it is between this woman and this man"

"...Some folks say big O stands for oil digging and a pumping in virgin soil
It may be crude as Texas T but a whole lot of drilling's all right with me

Some folks they got no sense they think it's a religious experience
they shout 'Oh God' to heavens a humming with the glorious ascension and second coming of...

Now a double big O is hard to find and an uptight big O takes a bottle of wine
some only come with a wedding band, there's a whole lot of O's that are made by hand, yeah..."

Olsen provides an solid blend of earthy vocals and direct lyrics, with an uncanny knack for just the right instrumentation on each cut. Her ability to immediately inflect emotion into a line or even a single word is remarkable. This release has a little something for everyone: joy, pain, humor, triumph, failure--sort of like life.

Track List:

• Spend the Whole Night With You (2:48)
• The Truth of a Woman (3:53)
• Rainy Night in Chinatown (2:45) Rick Bockner
• The Yellow Piper (5:24)
• Phoebe's Iceberg (2:48)
• Part Time Love (3:37)
• Headlights on the Highway (2:42)
• If I Stayed (2:14)
• I Am Ashamed (3:23)
• Between This Woman and this Man (2:44)
• Big O (4:40) David Dodson

Copyright © 1998-2008 Kevin & Maxine’s Celtic & Folk Music CD Reviews. All rights reserved.

Ownership, copyright and title of this folk music CD review belongs to me, Kevin McCarthy. Ownership, copyright and title are not transferable or assignable to you or other parties regardless of how or if you or other parties use, copy, save, backup, store, retrieve, transmit, display, publish, modify or share the CD review in whole or in part. Please read the "Terms, Conditions and Disclaimer" section on my web site for additional information about using, quoting, or reprinting this CD review.

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