Another Re-discovery

Singer-songwriter Karla Bonoff came up during the mid-70's "California Rock" movement - a poor man's Linda Ronstadt if you will. In fact, Ronstadt recorded three of Bonoff's songs on her Hasten Down The Wind album. Her self-titled debut was recorded shortly afterward, complete with the usual California Rock suspects (J.D. Souther, Leland Sklar, Russ Kunkel, Waddy Wachtel, as well as Ronstadt and Don Henley) lending a hand. While her voice wasn't quite as strong or pretty as Ronstadt's, it was her songwriting that set her apart from the others in her genre. The album's highlight was a song that Ronstadt had recorded, "Lose Again", and was later recorded by Alison Krauss. She recorded a few more albums through the 80's, even scoring a Top 40 hit with 1982's "Personally". Two more of her songs, "Tell Me Why" and "All My Life", were hits for Wynonna and Linda Ronstadt/Aaron Neville, but she never could match the success of her SoCal peers. After her last album in 1988, she fell into oblivion.

That is, until now. I recently got my hands on a live album she released last year, and it is a remarkable performance. Her voice and her songs sound as fresh today as any current artist on the charts, leading me to delve into her back catalog of classic albums (especially the aforementioned first album). Check her out if you get a chance - you won't be dissapointed.