Customer Reviews

Regulars & Refugees

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4 star:		(1)
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There is bound to be a DINER in everyone's past - - treasured for memories, tho' possibly a 'marker' of difficult times. Carrie Newcomer wrote a story about one and soon after, *Betty's Diner* was populated with a full-blown cast of characters. They come together as "regulars & refugees" in her latest album. From beautiful Alice & Roy to the youngest cast-member Tristan, these new friends will invade your consciousness, & your head will be full of the tunes as you follow your daily routines. The lilt of *Betty's Diner* makes you feel your cup truly "is filled with something kind."

Newcomer's husky alto has great appeal for me. I find her use of words fascinating: words seem to flow, simmer & burst in harmony with Mary Gaines' bass and other marvelous back-up instruments, even including that 'carpet scrap' & Sam Bartlett's claw hammer banjo! It surprised me to find that "I FLY" has become a favorite of mine. It seems to harken back to "My Father's Favorite Son" & "Amelia, almost Thirteen" . . . Many have messages with 'staying power': "La Paloma" . . . dying for air "Below the Waves" . . .

I see Carrie as a prolific song-writer, and someone who encourages the creative juices in others. (Perhaps you are one who should search for an opportunity to have her as a teacher?) You can hear in her many-faceted voice of compassion that the cause of justice is one of her lifetime priorities. "Regulars and Refugees" is the 10th Newcomer recording for Rounder/Philo Records; it is a peak performance. *DON'T MISS any opportunity to see & hear her in person!* is mcHAIKU's best advice.

When did I first hear you sing in Quaker ("silent"!) Meeting? Thank you, Carrie, for your strong hands, strong heart, and lovely voice that shivers through me like a haunting memory.

Carrie's music has been a constant companion for over a decade; With R&R, she's "simply" continued to add depth, texture, meaning, feeling, and real soul to the world. This is already one of my very favorite CDs. Thank You, Carrie!

Philo Records and Rounder Records present "Regulars and Refugees", featuring the latest release from Carrie Newcomer for fans and lovers of her music alike...this is a recording of extremely lyrical and melodic quality concentrating on some of the very best from her repertoire...the girl who gave us "Betty's Diner" with Rhubard Pie for dessert.

Let's take a look at some of the members in her band with Dane Clark on drms/percussion, Jeff Hedback on elec,upright and acoustic bass & carpet scrap, Keith Skooglund on classic, acoustic and electric guitars, Gary Walters on piano, Wurlitzer organ, Chris Wagoner on violin, baritone mandolin, lap steel guitar, accordion, dobro and vocals, Mary Gaines on cello, vocals, acoustic, bass, David Weber on vocals, Krista Detor on piano, vocals, Robert Meitus on acoustic guitar and vocals and Sam Bartlett on claw hammer banjo...this is an overall blanket to any serious music collection...one gem after another with top notch arrangements and performance, much more than just a toe tapper...each track represents Newcomer's incredible success as songwriter and performer through song...her voice and style are shades of Mary Chapin Carpenter, K.D. Lang and Anne Murray, not bad company to be in.

There are a few stand outs in this latest release "BE TRUE"..."NOTHING'S EVER WASTED"..."ALICE AND ROY"..."ARTHUR B AND BOB"..."LA PALOMA"..."THERE IS A SPIRIT"..."BEFORE THE FALL"...and of course "BETTY'S DINER", Carrie's deep vocals have grown increasingly uninhibited with lyrics of palpable honesty about them...Newcomer's career travels back to her roots in Indiana and continues right up to the present...she has covered every genre from Blues, Jazz, Folk and Pop Rock...with one of the most recognizable voices and styles in music today...her records and albums "Visions and Dreams" (1991), "An Angle at My Shoulder" (1994), "The Bird or the Wing" (1995), "My Father's Only Son" (1996), "My True Name" (1998), "The Age of Possibility" (2000), "The Gathering of Spirits" (2002), "Bare to the Bone" (2002), "Betty's Diner: The Best of Carrier Newcomer" (box set)...can remember her with the folk band "Stone Soup", knew she would eventually land out there on her own with a solo career...this to date is her best album..."Regulars and Refugees", has Grammy written all over it!

Total Time: 54:00 on 14 Tracks ~ Philo/Rounder Records 711247 ~ (8/09/2005)

...this would be it. I first met Carrie when she was working on this album. She told us workshop participants that the "diners had more to say" after she'd written "Betty's Diner." We've all seen these hurting people, but not everyone "has time" to listen to them. Thank God Carrie made the time. BUY IT!! :)

A friend of mine just mentioned that she liked Carrie Newcomer, so I took a listen. I enjoy Carrie's beautiful, melodic voice and her fantastic songwriting. I especially like how her songs bring up experiences from life in a positive and hopeful way.

Carrie Newcomer's collection "Regulars and Refugees" is lovely listening, providing lots of performance range for her strong alto voice. But the CD's real strength is the storytelling. Each track is the story of an regular at a small town diner - the exotic dancer ashamed of her job but trying to feed her kids, the 90 year old couple still in love, the woman just barely dealing with depression. The visual images from her remarkable lyrics and the just-right musical tone are as clear as if the CD had been a whole video.

Ms. Newcomer's voice is highly listenable, and the collection offers variation in style, tempo, accompaniment and vocal texture. Still, it could have benefited by, perhaps, a contrasting vocal on a track or two.

Carrie Newcomer was coming to a Rhode Island coffeehouse, and I had never even heard of her. I stopped in at the chain bookstore and previewed this CD to see if I should attend the show. After five or six of the 30-second samples, I was hooked. I never did make it to the show, but I did go back and get this CD a couple of days later.
Ms. Newcomer has released a gem of an album, a collection of stories about fictional people who are so real that you can almost touch them. Whether singing the lamenting tale of a woman who works as a stripper to make enough money to feed her kids, or the carefree voice of a dog idolizing his owner, or the touching love story of an elderly couple, the songs are so finely crafted that I am touched by them over and over again, even after many listens.
I must also say that Carrie has a smooth voice?a VERY smooth voice. She doesn?t display a lot of range on here, but nonetheless captures the mood of each song and brings it to life. And as wonderful as the stories themselves and her velvety voice is the musical accompaniment. The arrangements are pretty sparse for the most part, especially on the ballads, but a few songs are a bit fuller (the infection ?Five Years On? comes to mind).
I?ve recently ordered another CD by her and cannot wait to hear it. Carrie Newcomer may not be a household name, but she really should be.