Phyllis Sinclair
Café Concert Series

Sometimes, the secret to a great arrangement is knowing when to stop. Phyllis Sinclair's Washerwoman's Lament was clearly written on acoustic guitar, and that's the first thing you hear. Sinclair plays a rhythmic strum, and her vocal line has a wonderful folk-gospel feel. Eventually, a mandolin and bass part come in, and there is even some background vocals towards the end. And that's all. Elsewhere on this album, there are some drums, some strings, even accordion. But Washerwoman's Lament opens the album, and it establishes that Sinclair is going to use a light touch with her arrangements. This work is beautiful throughout, but nowhere better than here." Oliver di Place.
Dreams of the Washerwomen (CD Review)
Oliver di Place- USA
May 2011

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As the daughter of a single parent, Canadian singer-songwriter, Sinclair knows a bit about raising a child and juggling a career, so it's not surprising to find childhood experiences filtering into her songs. The strummed worksong day in the life title track opener, for example, recalls how her mother would take in washing to get the money needed to raise her three kids and care for her own mother, hanging out shirts in 'the merciless cold'. Another Single Day expands the story as a woman prays for the grace to endure 'the crush of the heavy load' while the country influenced Morning Laughter balances the hardship with memories of waking up to the sound of joy, and the jogging Sunday Best remembers why the phrase day of rest took on special meaning for the her and her family. It's not all on the same narrative note. Our Side Of The Line is a brisk rolling wheels tale of a musician's life on the road and the mid-paced Finding Ontario explores the mixed feelings about returning home to discover who you really are. Her songs aren't always about what they immediately appear. The Temptress (Follow Me Down) isn't about some femme fatale but about the effects of booze and while At The End Of The Road paints a picture of a wife waiting for her man to return from the nine to five grind, it's actually about death and reunion, a theme echoed in the closing simple notes and backwoods air of Where Time Stands Still. Sinclair's open heart, compassion and wistful reflectiveness make it well worth adding to the laundry list.
Dreams of the Washerwomen (CD Review)
Mike Davie, NetRhythms - UK May 2011

VIsit Phyllis' website at www.phyllissinclair.com

Wedsday January 25
8:00 pm
From Scratch
677B S. Railway St. S.E.
Medicine Hat, AB