Customer Reviews

Sign of Truth

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Tish Hinojosa brings a hauntingly beautiful voice to all her recordings and "Sign of Truth" is no exception. "Fence Post" and "Song for the Journey" particularly showcase this ladies amazing pitch, clarity and melodious quality.

Tish has invested, as she usually does, much of her personal life in this album. This one seems to have come from a particulary difficult patch of her life as reflected in "Fence Post", "I Have No Answers", "Faded Journey", and perhaps even in "Hey Little Love of Mine".

While this CD does not have the bilingual quality of many of its predecessors, it is an outstanding sampling of this artist's writing, singing and collaboration with Marvin Dykus and Chip Dolan. Anyone for whom this is a first Hinojosa purchase will want to purchase previous recordings like, "Aquella Noche", "Culture Swing" and - my personal favorite - "Homeland".

Once you've started you will want all of her CDs. Tish Hinojosa is a truly remarkable singer with uniquely bilingual and meaningful material. Buy this one! You won't regret it!

Tish Hinjosa's beautiful voice and wonderful songs captured my heart for the first time during an appearance on Austin City Limits many years ago. Since then, I've looked forward to each new album to enjoy her explorations into so many musical genres. Whether she's doing a pop song, rocking with Texas swing, or singing a ballad in Spanish, Tish is a joy to hear. This CD is one of her best yet. "Taste of Dying Summer" is a real change-of-pace for her. If you're a Tish fan, you'll want to get this right away. If you've never heard Tish before, buy this one, then go back and grab her earlier work ("Aquella Noche" is one of my favorites.)

One thing I have been able to count on from Tish Hinojosa is that each CD will be better than the last, and she does not disappoint with "Sign Of Truth." She has gotten progressively better with each release, which must be hard to do because the first CD I bought, "Homeland," 11 years ago, is pretty hard to top. I do have favorites, in an order that is not chronological, but there is an excitement and progression in every new release. However, "Sign Of Truth' is in a class of its own. Rather than be just another great CD, it stands out like few others, such as "Pet Sounds" by the Beach Boys or "Dark Side of the Moon" by Pink Floyd -- in other words, classics in a special league of their own even if you aren't a devoted fan. There is not a single weak song on "Sign Of Truth," which also is a sign the artist is right on track with a classic. How can I name a favorite with every track so great? How about the haunting extended piano in "Fence Post," the driving "Fire In Winter," the sweet simplicity of "Roses Around My Feet," "I Have No Answers" or "Wildflowers." As far as other reviewers complaining that Tish has gone Nashville, I don't know what they are talking about. There is no Nashville on this CD -- no twangy guitars, no cliche country lyrics, no simplistic melodies. Tish is still true to her roots. She never really did "ethnic Mexican" music because she is not Mexican. She is Mexican-American, with Tex-Mex and Southwest roots. There is no straying from that here. Tish wrote the songs for this CD and her songwriting, singing, playing, producing has never been better. I can't wait for the next release.

I have been a fan of Tish's music for over 10 years and I respect the fact that each of her albums are different, this one seemed to be a blend of Spanish and pop motiffs. Although some of the songs I loved, others I found to be rather bland and contrived. To put things in perspective, however, I find all of her music to be far superior to that of the many well known pop country artists out there, many of whom can't write music let alone sing it. Although I like her earlier music, which seemed to be inspired by Mexican melodies more, this was not a bad album.

I recommend this album to anyone, Tish fan or not. It did not leave me with the complete joy that Frontejas did, nor with the astonishment that Dreaming From The Labyrinth did, but I love every last song. I am amazed at the way she changes from album to album. And I would say to Tish: it's all great stuff. Don't mind what some of these people say. If you didn't change they would be complaining about that.

This is not my favorite of Hinojosa's work. The CD itself seems crowded....electric guitars, a piano and synthesizers figure in. Her voice also seems over-produced.

That said, these are still Tish's songs, and they do much to enlighten us about her love for her culture. The title is an anthem...typical for Tish in a way, in that she often includes songs uplifting the poor and disenfranchised on her CDs; but this time she acknowledges that all of us are drawn to the things that "mirror" success to us....youth, beauty,success, money. She got some flak for this as if she was endorsing such an outlook, but the song merely states that as humans we get drawn into seeking those things. "Roses Around My Feet" teases with an inviting melody, but refers to a Latino saying that means, you're just flattering me, I don't trust your words.

My favorite, sad as it seems, is "Fencepost", with only Tish's voice and piano. "Feelin' like a fencepost/Looking at a railyard/Everything's gray/My heart's pinned away/.....I'm broken...but I can't seem to just fall down." Haunting melody, with words that anyone who has faced a period of burnout in their lives will relate to.

This isn't the Western Swing or the Mexican Ballad type of CD that Tish has done before, and it may suggest a bit of a nod to mainstream pop, but it is still strong.

I first saw Tish in Seattle about 7 years ago, and since then, I purchased and enjoyed every CD that Tish she has recorded. I believe that "Sign of Truth" is right up there with "Taos to Tennessee" and "Culture Swing."

Her voice is the one of the most beautiful of any singer today and her sound just keeps getting better. The talented Marvin Dykhuis is instrumentally perfect as usual.

If you are a music lover, go buy this CD and you too will want to own all her music.

Tish's music has always been hard for the industry to nail down. Go into a CD store and you might find it under folk, country, Latin, or female vocalists. Any one of these could be correct and that might be part of the reason that Tish is not as well known as she should be. On Sign of Truth, she continues with her eclectic ways, but in a more solemn and pensive mood. The problem with this album, and I concur here with several of the other reviewers, is that there is just too much top-fortyish Nashville style pop cum country, sometimes degenerating into the downright sappy and lachrymose. On a positive note, Tish's voice is as heavenly as ever. There are a couple of standout songs here which include the philosophical title cut, and the lightly salsa-infused "Fire in Winter". I Have No Answers is a good song but is somewhat spoiled by a very commercial-sounding instrumental interlude. "Faded Souvenir" is truly lame musically and is the lowlight of the album. Marvin Dykhuis and Chip Dolan remain solid as the core of Tish's backup band. They've been with her so long they seem to instinctively know just what it is she wants them to do and...I've heard them play live many times...they always do it well. If you are a hard-core Hinojosa fan, you may be dismayed by her plunge into pop/country but will still find something to like here. I just wish she hadn't strayed so far from Spanish. Her bilingual approach to her music has always been part of her charm. What few Spanish lyrics are here are eminently forgettable.

I love Tish. I bought this CD at her concert in Westport, CT last week and I am very disappointed with it. Count me among those who don't like the pop sound she creates here. The CD contains a number of songs that she performed in concert--they were beautiful live, but not on the CD. Drums, bass guitar. Who needs it? Certainly not Tish. And aside from that, for some reason her voice doesn't come through with the same clarity and beauty as on her other CDs, and as it does in concert. Experimentation is fine, but to me, this CD's a failure. (But I still love you, Tish.)

I am thrilled with Tish's new release. I just received it in the mail this week and have listened to it multiple times already. I heartily recommend this CD.