Alison Krauss - Essential Alison Krauss

A brief but bountiful collection

Five Grammys for the Robert Plant collaboration Raising Sand brought Krauss’ collective tally to 26, a figure trumped only by Sir George Solti and Quincy Jones. The sole track from that album featured here, however, is Sister Rosetta Goes Before Us, on which Robert Plant plays no part. This is clearly Alison’s show...

The poster girl for bluegrass she may be, and her participation on the soundtrack of Joel & Ethan Coen’s O Brother Where Art Thou? an undeniable turning point, but it would be wrong to suggest Krauss limits herself to country cool. She effortlessly adapts prairie sensibilities for the pop world, as her cover of The Foundations’ Baby Now That I Found You attests.

Sawing On The Strings and So Long So Wrong highlight her dextrous fiddle-playing, a badge of authenticity to placate the purists, though it’s the shimmering articulacy of the voice on Wish I Still Had You and Restless that marks her out as one of the most emotive and distinctive female singers working in any genre today. A mere 14 tracks may only hint at the range of her talents, but it’s a good place to start.

4 stars 4 stars 4 stars 4 stars

Decca | 6106552

Reviewed by Terry Staunton
<< Back to Issue 366

Login Here

Free Newsletter


Subscribe to
our email newsletter by emailing:

anna.bowen@
metropolis.co.uk