1989 Album Review: Shelby Lynne – ‘Sunrise’

After a very turbulent childhood, which sadly ended with her alcoholic father killing her mother and then himself, Shelby moved to Nashville with her younger sister Allison, who is also a singer. Barely out of her teens, she started playing bars and clubs to support herself and her sister. After appearing on a TV show, Shelby inked a deal with Epic Records, releasing her first single, a duet with George Jones, called “If I Could Bottle This Up” in 1988. Even though it was only a very minor hit, her debut album Sunrise still followed the year after, something that would be very unlikely in today’s business. Paired with legendary producer Billy Sherrill, one would think that the end results could be nothing less than amazing.  And they aren’t. From the first note of the first song, “The Hurtin’ Side”, Lynne’s voice is established as a force to be reckoned with, and I can honestly say that it’s one of the very best in any genre;  it possesses both power and vulnerability, radiating emotion on every song. “The Hurtin’ Side” is about a lost love, whom Shelby still can’t get over.

There’s a river of feeling somewhere
And I’m told it flows deep and wide
But this mountain of memories I’m climbing
Keep me here on the hurtin’ side

The production of the track comes off as outdated, like many other uptempo numbers from this era do. Still, the lyrics of the song coming from the mouth of 19 year old Shelby (which is how old Taylor Swift is now), who sings with the conviction of an experienced forty year old, can be described as nothing less than great. Like LeAnn Rimes, Shelby showed an amazing ability of conveying  emotion at a very young age, and that ability is present on the entire album. “Little Bits And Lightning” is a song that deserves nothing less than classic status. The lyrics are nothing less than timeless, the topic being a lost love that the narrator’s trying to find again, but all she can find is “Little Bits And Pieces”.

But all I found were little bits and pieces
Odds and ends of things we tore in two
But all I found were little bits and pieces
But I couldn’t find one piece of love that belonged to me and you

Billy Sherrill’s production is glossy, which fits Shelby’s voice well. Shelby’s vocal is, as always, sublime, and her performance is pretty much the definition of heartbreak. Few people can claim to achieve such things at age 19.

“Thinking About You Again” is a song about a woman who hasn’t quite healed from her last breakup, and is saddened because she “let herself start thinkin’ about you again”. “This Time I Almost Made It” is a Barbara Mandrell cover, which Shelby does much justice to. The song itself is about a woman who can’t say no when the man she loves comes knocking at her door. The problem is that he’s married, and she knows that it’s wrong, but “my heart cried out begging you to stay”. A great cover, and I must again comment on Billy Sherrill’s great production, giving the song the emotional weight it needs with a mellow and soft arrangement.

Every day why I don’t know
When I pass your house I drive real slow
It’s out of my way, it’s crazy for sure
Cause you do not live in that house anymore

Every night right about now
I grow uneasy kind of restless somehow
It starts out like thunder on a slow steady roll
Then I hit the floor half out of control

The lyrics are masterfully written, the production sublime, and Shelby’s vocal dripping with emotion. All the things I said about “Little Bits And Pieces” apply to this too, and I continue to marvel at the talent of acting  Shelby has. Let’s face it, no 19 year old could have lived some of these lyrics, which makes her performance a brilliant case of acting.

“I Love You So Much It Hurts” is a song whose title says it all. Shelby loves her man so much it frightens her to death just thinking about losing him. You’ll find some nice steel on this track, which is always welcome. “That’s Where It Hurts” is reminicient of Patty Loveless’ “I Try To Think About Elvis” if only for the fact that it’s uptempo novelty done to perfection. “I’m Confessin’” sees Shelby revealing her innermost thoughts and feelings to her man, but she’s afraid he might leave her because of it. A nuanced and restrained performance that really brings forth the emotion in the lyrics.

The album closer is a tribute to her parents – particularly her mother. It’s a song about love that stays behind even though the people whom it originated from are gone. It’s simple, to the point, and exactly the kind of song that most people would want to commemorate their parents with. There’s nothing else than what’s already been said about Shelby’s voice that applies here; it’s powerful and radiating emotion, and is pretty damn near perfect.

Except for a few production missteps on the uptempo numbers, Sunrise is a perfect album. Shelby has the songs, the voice and the looks. Why she never succeeded at radio will forever remain a mystery to me.

Grade: A+

Listen to ‘Your Love Stays With Me’ and ‘Little Bits and Pieces’.