Mary Chapin Carpenter Album: “Age of Miracles [Bonus Track] [Barnes & Noble Exclusive]”

My iPod has a number of genres I've set- jazz, classical, country, various world catagories, etc....and then there are two oddball genres -Van Morrison and Mary Chapin Carpenter. Both talents deep beyond measure and in a genre all their own. MCC's new CD may be her best in a long productive career. From the opening track you know you've stepped into a beautiful zone where music and lyrics flow effortlessly and tap into the core of the human experience. Sound a little too much? Thanks to MCC we do live in an "Age of Miracles." She'll move you through soul searching, contemplative, uplifting and bitter sweet reflections that make you feel she's your twin sister that's been beside you your whole life and just decided to sing that life to you. I could go through the CD and analyze, critique, or summarize each song but that's not what this CD's about. This is about personal introspection and that's the wonderful journey for you as Mary opens your heart and your psyche through her music. Ignore the amateurish cover illusration and go straight to the music (and lyric sheet) and listen to the pure talent of a great singer-songwriter-musician at the top of her game.

This CD has pretty much what you would expect from Mary Chapin Carpenter: literate lyrics, lovely musical arrangements, and Carpenter's smooth comfortable voice. It won't blow the doors off. If anything, Carpenter is more introspective than ever and quite focused on finding the beauty in every part of life. Rather than the defiance of He Thinks He'll Keep Her and I Feel Lucky, we get I Put My Ring Back On, the only true country song on this album with a nice count-your-blessings twist (and great backup vocal from Vince Gill). This is the type of CD I can listen to over and over. She writes really smart songs and has revealed quite a bit of herself. My personal favorite is Mrs. Hemingway. How many songwriters read two out-of-print bios as research for a single song? In my personal opinion, this isn't quite up to the level of The Calling and her holiday CD, but it's darn good.

Mary Chapin Carpenter may well be the only artist around today who appeals to the contemporary country audience as much as the folk-pop singer-songwriter enthusiasts. Tellingly, her latest effort, "The Age Of Miracles", debuted this past week at #28 on Billboard's pop chart, #6 on their country chart, and (not unexpectedly) at Number One on the folk-albums chart.

As far as the country fans are concerned, I'd say that the mid-tempo rockers "I Put My Ring Back On" and "The Way I Feel" are the most "radio-friendly". In fact, "I Put My Ring Back On" is already on the playlist at BBC Radio 2 in England - a place not generally thought of in the music industry today as prime territory for American country acts. As for the folk-pop singer-songwriter devotees, we may very well find ourselves more enamored of the slower-paced, more acoustic tracks, like the title song. Now this is the sort of songwriting and production that those of us who grew up listening to artists like James Taylor, Carole King, and Carly Simon (who of course influenced Mary Chapin) are accustomed to!

But whichever style one prefers, it's here, and I would hasten to add that this CD sounds just fine on my car's audio system. And as always, Mary Chapin's voice is wonderful, meshing perfectly with the intimate, understated quality of her performances. I am very much looking forward to seeing her on her upcoming national tour!

This latest album by Mary captures something of her self imposed existence in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, that only dogs and cats for company can impose on the songwriter.In her recent 'LIVE' shows she has sought to advise audiences of her domesticity and the need to travel many miles to use a broadband internet connection.

The artist, therefore, is a lone soul prepared to be away from the demands of the world so that she can capture in song her feelings.

Previous albums have a tendency to drift after the key songs into a mire of similarity - but here the ensemble is captured in the final track. This means the listener has to focus all the listening into the complete package and not to dip-out after awhile.

Long may she continue to write her feelings in song.

She may then have the courage to step down from the stage and meet her fans face to face instead of leaving signed copies in the front of show.

Mary Chapin Carpenter, true to form..... Never better! Zephyr, I Was a Bird, Solitude are favorites. Awe who am I kidding, they are all fantastic! We (my husband and I) listen to this CD continuously and every turn sounds better than the last. We just switch it up with more of MCC's previous albums! Every song of hers makes you long for all the rest!