Album Review of
Little Black Heart

Written by Duane Verh
September 4, 2016 - 12:00am EDT
Review Rating Star Review Rating Star Review Rating Star Review Rating Star Review Rating Star

With one of the toughest rockabilly voices this side of Wanda Jackson, Ruby Dee serves her pugnacious pipes quite well with an impressive string of original roadhouse rockers, with lyrics as sharp as her band is spunky.  The fare here is fresh sounding and varied, from the sure-footed swing of “Can You Spare a Match?” to the insistent country drive of the minor-keyed “Put You Down”, to the straight-ahead ‘billy rocker “Mean Mean Woman”.  The mid-tempo heart-tugger “Camille” is definitely airplay-worthy and Ms.  Dee’s cover of the Jack Scott classic “The Way I Walk” is a natural.