Every Rose Has Its Thorn

On Tuesday, I headed to The Horseshoe Tavern for Whitney Rose's album release. It was her sophomore effort courtesy of Cameron House Records. As such, another label-mate provided the opening set. At first, Devin Cuddy seemed to be in the same vein. Laying down honky-tonk and other country-tinged chords, he sang with an early Presley-ish tone. But whether his own material or covers like Pancho and Lefty (Townes Van Zandt), there was a by-the-number to both his piano-playing and his singing. It didn't work for me especially on the blues songs. His attempt to sang satire, Randy Newman's Political Science and Short People, also left a lot of heads scratching.

Whitney Rose is known for her white shift dresses. So it was no surprise when the slender singer/guitarist came on stage in a mini-version with dark spiral prints. Starting with At The Do-Si-Do from her 1st album, she emphatically declared her allegiance to that old country sound, sometimes with a touch of early rock-and-roll. Over the course of 1 hour, she had plenty of time to showcase new songs too: from the heart-breaking Last Party to the cheeky The Devil Borrowed My Boots. Speaking of heart-break, the slow-burn Heartbreaker of the Year (also the new album's name) was explosive. There were forays into pop when she channeled Lesley Gore (You Don't Own Me) and Nancy Sinatra (These Boots Are Made For Walking). Throughout the night, lead guitarist Nichol Robertson and the rest of the band provided wonderfully dynamic and layered support. After ending with a boot-stomping My First Rodeo, Rose came back for a 2-song encore: Coat of Many Color (Dolly Parton), a tribute to her family who drove in from PEI; and a rocking Swinging Doors (Merle Haggard), to send the crowd home happy.