Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
There is always a worry for performer and listener alike when the construct of music takes its turn at presenting a tribute to a fallen hero, the passing of a legend to whom had achieved cult status of just how the performer sets the scene to make sure the music is not only appreciated but which will also serve up a truth to which the novice audiophile will be excited enough in which to delve deeper, to investigate the sound offered to them.
The passing of Paul Siebel in 2022 was felt keenly by those who saw him as something more than a person universally covered by other artists; and whilst that list of names shone like an audio who’s who, including the sensational Linda Ronstadt, Bonnie Raitt, Emmylou Harris, Waylon Jennings, and The Flying Burrito Brothers to name but a few, the man himself was so much more, and it is to the character and deference of Suzy Thompson that the image of the early adopter of the Greenwich Village Folk scene is fulfilling and wholesome as Suzy Sings Siebel (Volume One) intends it to be.
Despite Paul Siebel recording only a couple of studio albums, the expression and force of his music has always found an audience, and as Ms. Suzy Thompson tackles with love and tender cool tracks such as Uncle Dudley, Louise, The Ballad Of Honest Sam, You Don’t Need A Gun and If I Could Stay, those missing years from when he truly should have been one of the go to names of the genre, are erased, they are let go, for nobody with truth and talent in their artistry is ever truly forgotten, never ignored.
What makes the album even more poignant is the fact that Ms. Thompson was able to talk to the man of her observations not long before he sadly passed away; it is a sign of serendipity and cosmic force that such a meeting could happen, that Ms. Thompson understood just what her dedication to him meant; and in this admirably beautiful album the connection is clear, it sways with respect, it continues the vibrancy of a song writer whose passionate belief of life never wavered.
Suzy Thompson releases Suzy Sings Siebel on August 1st.
Ian D. Hall