Susan Werner

Susan Werner is an über-talented artist who plays guitar and piano and sings beautifully, skillfully navigates the genres of jazz, gospel and folk, and writes real songs about real stuff that adults living in the real world care about, but it doesn’t feel like math homework or the leftover brussel sprouts your mom makes you eat. Performing in the margins outside the vapid pop music landscape, this singer/songwriter from the Midwest is deep without being pretentious, funny without being silly, smart without being arrogant, passionate without being strident, and very, very sensual. (Sensual is when "sexy" goes to graduate school.)

At a U2 concert I saw a long time ago, before the band performed the song "Helter Skelter" Bono said, "Charlie Manson stole this from the Beatles and we're here to give it back!" On The Gospel Truth, I think Susan Werner does the same thing with the thorny subject of religion, taking it back from the clutches of bible-carrying bigots and televangelists. It's Faith meeting Skepticism, and finding out they have a lot in common. Not really expecting an answer from God, her heartfelt songs are warm and melodic questions.

She’s good on CD (Last of the Good Straight Girls, Time Between Trains, I Can't Be New, Live at the Tin Angel, New Non-Fiction, Midwestern Saturday Night), and better in concert. Unplugged, Susan sounds refreshingly unscripted. Such a deal. Go see her and feed a starving folkie today.