Diamonds in the Dirt

by William Ruhlmann British blues guitarist Joanne Shaw Taylor comes off as a talented, if unfinished, young blues artist on her second album, Diamonds in the Dirt. Leading a quartet also including Steve Potts (drums), Dave Smith (bass), and Rick Steff (keyboards), Taylor turns in a set of original songs that serve as platforms for her electric lead work. The CD booklet prints all her lyrics, which she sings in a smoky, throaty alto, and the words turn out to be a succession of clichés, with a heavy emphasis on fire imagery, as titles like "Let It Burn" and "World on Fire" suggest. Bad behavior, bad luck, and bad love are alluded to, all of which are more than enough to justify the emotion Taylor expresses in her singing and the fervor with … » Read more