Artist Spotlight: Ruthie Foster

Attending a Friday night Allman Brothers concert at the Beacon Theatre last month, I walked away blown away by Susan Tedeschi. Even on a stage full of legends, it was her that I left talking about. In all honesty, it's not often that I'm "blown away" by female singers. With her vocals on The Band's "Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever" and "The Weight", as well as Derek and The Dominos' "Anyday", and Grateful Dead staple "Lovelight", she received some of the biggest applause of the night. And deservedly so.

Less than one month later, I am yet again blown away by another female vocalist. This time it is the phenomenal Ruthie Foster. I first discovered her on XM Radio at which time I saved her track for later listening. Since I've returned to that song, I have listened to it constantly. She has a beautiful, soulful, natural vocal that reminds be very much of Susan. It's a little less whiskey-soaked and a little more soul/gospel, but the similarities are definitely there.

Doing some additional research on her, I learned that Ruthie is not all that disconnected from the bands we've already covered here on The Weight. Her latest album was produced by New Orleans' Papa Mali and she sang backup vocals on Gov't Mule's High and Mighty album.

But Papa Mali had an entirely different kind of Ruthie Foster sound in mind when recording commenced at Austin’s Congress House Studio, and Foster was delighted to discover that his vision tapped deep into her own roots as a music lover. Together with a crack band including drummer George Sluppick (Mofro), bassist Glenn Fukunaga (Dixie Chicks, Terri Hendrix) and Hammond B3 player Anthony Farrell (Greyhounds), they set out to make an honest to goodness classic soul album. The kind that, in a different era, with a different singer, could just as easily have been called The Phenomenal Sam Cooke.

“A lot of folks don’t know this, but that really is my background,” says Foster. “I come from a deep background of old soul and blues and even R&B. Early on, long before I ever got into the folk thing, I was doing more soul on acoustic guitar than anything else. And that’s always been a part of the sound that I have.”

Visit her Myspace site for some additonal tracks. You will not be disappointed.