Black and Blue –  Annie Fitzgerald (reviewed by Dave Franklin)

There is no place like home, or so they say, and by her own admission it would seem that a return to her native Minnesota soil after a decade in New York City has imbued Annie Fitzgerald’s latest album, You and Me and The Sun, with a deep rooted honesty and emotional depth. And indeed as a calling card for the just released second album, Black and Blue walks a fine line between vulnerability and resolve plus it displays a wonderful generic weave.

It ticks commercial and mainstream boxes whilst dealing in bluesy, rock and roll, a rootsy and resonant sound that will have fans of the likes of Bonnie Raitt wandering in to check it out. It grooves with confidence and for all its spacious nature packs a punch just through the guitar tones, the staccato riff and the emotive vocals. Anyone who can write songs that fit effortlessly between East Nashville bar band and chart climbing unit shifter clearly knows how to play the game. Though I suspect in the case of Annie Fitzgerald, that was never consciously part of the plan. A happy accident indeed.