Easy

Kelly Willis | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 20, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Rykodisc
• ASIN: B00006AAQX
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #132,046 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The complexities of love provide plenty of opportunity for rueful reflection on the deceptively titled Easy. Though Kelly Willis has shown that she can belt a country song with the best of them, she opts for a more intimate approach on this collection of midtempo ballads. The arrangements are primarily acoustic and harmony-laden (with Alison Krauss and Vince Gill among those providing vocal support), as Willis draws from the songbooks of husband Bruce Robison ("What Did You Think"), Paul Kelly ("You Can't Take It with You"), Kirsty MacColl ("Don't Come the Cowboy with Me Sunny Jim!"), and Marcia Ball ("Find Another Fool"). The singer's own writing extends the artistic progression of her previous album, What I Deserve, with the bittersweet "If I Left You" and the melodic reverie of "Wait Until Dark" (written with John Levanthal) showing how much she has matured as an artist since her days as an alt-country ingénue. Willis saves the best for last with the shimmering transcendence of "Reason to Believe," a celebration of the everyday wonder a baby brings to her mother, providing redemption after all the heartbreak previously evoked. --Don McLeese

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the year's best!, August 21, 2002

By 

Kori Frazier (Kent, OH United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Easy (Audio CD)

In 1999, Kelly Willis stunned the music world with her ambitious comeback album WHAT I DESERVE, a record that won her a new audience with fans in the Alt. Country and Americana circuit. Now, after three years away from the spotlight Kelly has returned with EASY, an album that is not only different from anything she has ever pursued, but the best music of her career.

As promised by No Depression magazine and various reviews from all corners of the web, Kelly delivers an all acoustic album with prominent traditional country influence and a tinge of folk and bluegrass. The result is astonishing--her powerful, unique voice is a perfect match for the honesty and emotion of these genres, and it is a wonder that this is a project she hasn't pursued sooner. EASY is sheer beauty from beginning to end. Songs such as "If I Left You" and "Not What I Had In Mind" follow in the footsteps of some of the best moments of WHAT I DESERVE, Kelly shows her vocal chops on "Wait Until Dark" and the utterly gorgeous "Easy (As Falling Apart)," and the talent and emotion present in "Reason to Believe" will leave you in awe of the amazing abilities she posesses. While six of the album's ten songs were written by Kelly, she also showcases a number of works by other artists. Hubby Bruce Robison's "What Did You Think" and the bluegrass flavored "You Can't Take It With You" (which features guest performances by Dan Tyminski, Vince Gill, and Nickel Creek's Chris Thile) represents the album's wide variety of songs, while her cover of Kirsty MacColl's "Don't Come the Cowboy With Me, Sonny Jim" is the true highlight of the album. Every song present on this musical gem is sheer perfection in every way possible.

With the O BROTHER WHERE ART THOU soundtrack sitting at multi-platinum states, and traditional country making a comeback, it seems that EASY couldn't have arrived at a better time. With Kelly's amazing voice, the powerful musicianship of both her and fellow performers, and the project's acoustic flavor, the album is easily the highlight of her career. If you are a fan of Kelly, traditional music, or music that is just plain great, buy this one now, or miss out on one of the best albums this year has produced.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great (and real) Austin country music from KW, August 22, 2002

By 

William Merrill "eclecticist" (San Antonio, TX United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Easy (Audio CD)

There's nothing artificial about Kelly and her songs. Her singing voice is compelling and strong, but it's also full of little hesitations and sighs that personalize the music. I just love listening to her sing. Most of the tunes on Easy were written by Kelly, and hum-along cuts such as the title tune and "If I Left You" are fine examples of the songwriting art. She's good at selecting songs by others to cover too -- the Paul Kelly song "You Can't Take It With You" could easily do for Ms. Willis what "Let Him Fly" did for the Dixie Chicks. The musicians playing with her are a topnotch bunch of Austin studio hands and country greats, including two of the "O Brother" crowd, Dan Tyminski and Alison Krauss.

The slip card on the outside of the CD has a quote from Time magazine about her excellent '99 CD, What I Deserve. It described that album as "the smartest, most consistently worthwhile country CD released this year." I agree, and would say the same thing about Easy.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Kelly Yet!, September 27, 2002

By 

CAF (Tyler, TX USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Easy (Audio CD)

I just finished again listening to "What I Deserve" (Kelly's last release) and it still sounds quite good. "Easy" is a very different kind of album. I think the few negative reviewers here were expecting "What I Deserve: Part 2" or a reprise of her style on her old MCA recordings. "Easy" is not that easy. It is the best music ever from an artist who has made a lot of good music, but it has a tendancy to defy categorization. Pehaps it is old-timey, alt-country, bluegrass, folk-pop that goes down oh so "easy" or perhaps it is simply great music. Then there is the matter of her voice. With most artists we say they sound like so-and-so. Kelly's voice seems to have a mind or style of its own--you know, like the great ones. You might have to give "Easy" a few listens before the voice grabs hold and doesn't let go--after-all it doesn't sound like anyone but Kelly Willis. One more thing. Like the photos of Kelly with the CD, which are not your typical make-over, "glam" photos, this is honest music--without pretense. The musicians and guest artists are always in the right part of the whole. Kelly's self-penned numbers more than hold their own with the well-chosen covers and reveal a sensibility worth spending time with. As of 15 minutes ago my favorite song was "Easy (As Falling Apart)," but that could change with my next listen because all the songs keep revealing new dimensions. Let me make this "easy." This is one of the best releases of the year in any genre--why not give it a try?!