Check it out! From the legendary Robert Oermann at Music Row Mag!
DisClaimer: Blake Shelton, Lari White Offer Top New Tracks
Robert K. Oermann • February 9, 2017 •
LARI WHITE/Moonshine
Writers: Tom Bukovac/Lari White; Publishers: SWG, BMI; Producer: Lari White; Skinny WhiteGirl Music (track)
– Lari’s first new collection in 13 years is a double CD titled Old Friends / New Loves. One disc contains imaginative reinterpretations of her 1990s hits (”Now I Know,” “That’s My Baby,” “Lead Me Not,” “That’s How You Know,” etc.). The New Loves disc showcases her new songwriting accomplishments, including this moody, multi-tracked, swampy delight. Haunting, compelling and completely captivating. The album drops tomorrow. Get it.
I'm stoked to have Bob's blessing on this new project. He's a legendary music critic and historian who's been a tastemaker in Music City since before Garth sang demos. Made all the sweeter by the memory of his first review of my music, waaaaaaay back in 1988. Back when Nashville still felt like a small southern town, when selling 100,000 country albums was an industry home run, when no one went downtown after dark unless they needed to score some weed.
I'd won the Nashville Network's talent show, You Can Be A Star, and with it a single release on Capitol Records. My BIG BREAK, certain to make me a superstar overnight! I wrote "Flying Above The Rain" with veteran hit writer and studio singer Lisa Silver, a song for my dear mom, fighting for her life against cancer at 46 years old. It was a song about struggling through storms of fear and doubt into the peace of faith and hope - flying above the rain - and it made my mom cry every time she heard it. Capitol's powerhouse PR got it to all the major critics and Bob's review was the first published, front page of Music Row Magazine. His one-word opinion packed a powerful punch:
"Candy-coated."
Yeah, it smarted. I sent him a little note saying, "Thanks for the review, Mr. Oermann. I hope you develop a sweet tooth." I don't know if he ever got it.
Flash forward a quarter century, past gold records and hit songs and sold-out crowds, and here's the thing: you never stop needing someone to say "Hey, I really like your music!" All the success in the world becomes water under the bridge of a new song, and you only get to cross that next bridge if someone is walking beside you, singing along.
So thanks for the bon mot, Bob, and thanks to all of you who keep crossing these bridges with me. XOX Lari
