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by Seth Rogovoy
LENOX, Mass., July 1, 1996 -- Bernice Lewis celebrated the release of her excellent new CD, "Isle of Spirit," in concert before a standing-room- only crowd in the barn at the Pleasant Valley Wildlife Sanctuary on Sunday evening.
In a program that showcased the finely-honed, well-crafted songs from the new album, Lewis was variously joined by musicians who helped contribute to the shaping of what is probably her most mature, successful recorded effort to date.
The true test of any contemporary folk song's strength is its ability to stand naked and be presented by just a singer with her guitar. If her concert on Sunday proved anything, it is that Lewis has assembled a deep repertoire of diverse and occasionally profound songs with which she will undoubtedly be moving, entertaining and delighting audiences in the coming months and years.
From the lighthearted, Western swing novelty of "Red Cowboy Boots" to the tender love ballad, "All the Time In the World" to the mystical pantheism of "When the Rivers Had No Names" to the gorgeously heartbreaking Holocaust ballad, "Ways To Survive," Lewis took her listeners on a journey of the spirit, full of laughter, love and pain. In doing so, she gave generously of herself, with the emotion of her soul as well as her music and the vibrato of her heart as well as her voice.
Helping Lewis out was producer and multi-instrumentalist Adam Rothberg, who contributed some multi-textured guitar accompaniment to "Clear Texas Morning" from the new CD. Singer-songwriter Erica Wheeler played a few of her own tunes, including "Down River," the only song that Lewis didn't write on her new album, but a song that in fact was inspired by a story Lewis told Wheeler.
Singer-songwriter and Lewis's on-again, off-again duet partner Janet Feld joined her for "Bridges That Hold," which featured some glistening dual guitars and gorgeous harmonies that worked so well the two may want to consider once again the possibility of combining their acts and taking them on the road together. Dave Crossland also joined Lewis, providing some harmonies toward the evening's end.
Besides the power of her songs, Lewis also proved the originality of her vision. Her music, her vocals and her writing are utterly and uniquely her own, which in a genre that often feeds off itself cannibalistically is a rare and treasured value.
Preceding Lewis' set, the Ladies Auxiliary Ukelele Orchestra, featuring Lewis, Amy Rose and Cathy Schane-Lydon, offered a brief set of their novelty numbers, including Lewis' "I Need a Wife Too" and a deadpan version of Bruce Springsteen's "I'm On Fire" that made explicit the perversity at the core of the tune.
[This review originally appeared in the Berkshire Eagle on July 2, 1996. Copyright Seth Rogovoy 1996. All rights reserved.]
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