Album Review: Rhiannon Giddens – ‘You’re the One’

Rhiannon Giddens understands her musical and cultural heritage more than any other contemporary artist in Americana music. She devotes attention to the musicians of the past like Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Nina Simone, Patsy Cline, Dolly Parton and beyond. Her previous collaborations with Francesco Turrisi and Our Native Daughters have wrestled with the dark heart of America’s past and its impact on the present.

‘You’re the One’ takes a step towards a different kind of light, consisting of twelve original tracks of uplifting and diverse Americana, played with verve and vivacity.

The multiplicity of her stylistic musical influences remains strong throughout. She said in a recent interview that she believes: ‘“You should be able to have a blues tune next to a country tune next to a jazzy tune next to an R&B tune.” To me that’s why she encapsulates the true potential of the genre of Americana.

Lyrically the album corners itself mainly with personal relationships (‘Another Wasted Life’ being the exception). Love songs like ‘You’re the One’ and ‘You Put the Sugar in my Bowl’ might sound lyrically jarring to those who have heard her last darker few records – and yet she sounds utterly content and almost deliciously thrilled to be able to just sing a few fun songs without the clouds of history over her head.

On ‘Louisiana Man’ and ‘Hen in the Foxhouse’ she modernises her banjo sound, using layered sounds to create something quite original in folk music – honouring tradition and yet driving things forward. ‘If You Don’t Know How Sweet it Is’ and ‘Way Over Yonder’ are humorous and let her confidence as a performer shine through.

Final track ‘Good Ol Cider’ starts up quickly and then fades away, like the hoedown has wandered off the porch and down the end of the garden. It sounds like an invitation to come join the party, where the traditional tunes tread lightly and you feel the burdens of the day lifting.

While you could argue it lacks the emotional devastation and historical weight of her previous records, that choice almost feels deliberately freeing. This kind of accomplished and entertaining palate cleaner will always be a welcome listen.