REVIEW;
THE WASHINGTON SISTERS
UNDERSTATED
Do you have the end-of-the semester
blues? Here's a cure: two lesbian
identicaltwins from Washington DC
singing "pop, a capella funk, jazz
swing, gospel, contemporary folk and
reggae.” The Washington Sisters have
put together a well-balanced, up-beat
album, Understated, that's
unquestionably fun listening.
My favorite songs on the album are
"Amma" and "Sweet Inspiration.” "Amma”
is a giddy love song that just makes me
smile. The Washington Sisters sing of
that helplessly happy feeling of being
in love: "I feel like a child - oh my!/
I feel playful and wild - oh my!” The
sisters have very similar voices, and
in this song they blend their voices
with a light pop sound for a beautiful
effect. (Incidentally, this is the
song that the tape player in the music
library chose to chew up. Grrrr.)
"Sweet Inspiration” has a rhythmic a
capella bass with a sexy voice on top
describing the comfort of a lover.
This song features my favouite line on
the album: "There just ain't no
telling/ What a satisfied woman might
do. ”
Understated's greatest strength is the
resilient spirituality that winds
through many of the songs. Many
African religions teach that the dead
remain on the earth to protect and
guide living humans. All people who
are alive or have ever lived form a
community through the earth. This
belief is beautifully explained in
"Breaths” which was first recorded by
Sweet Honey in the Rock. The song says
"Listen more often to things than to
beings/ Tis the ancestors' breath/ when
the fire voice is heard/ tis the
ancestors' breath/ in the voice of the
water.” The Sisters explore this
further in an original song "Find the
Spirit”: "Find the spirit on a
mountainside/ Find the spirit in a
rushing tide.”
KILLER CONVICTED IN
ANTI-LESBIAN SHOOTING
Stephen Roy Carr has been found guilty
of first degree murder in a shooting
that killed Rebecca Wight and
critically wounded her lover, Claudia
Brenner. He has been sentenced to life
imprisonment without parole.
On May 13, the Carr fired upon the two
women at their secluded Appalachian
I think the album's greatest weakness
are the songs that are explicitly
political - "Say no!" and "How do you
feel?" These lyrics don't say^anything
original: "Apartheid is/ the
sanctioned, institutionalized/
discrimination on the basis of race"
and "Back home in Amerika/ The Navajo
and the Hopi/r Are trying to work out
their differences." Uh huh. "How do
you feel?" involves "How do you feel
about [insert verb here]/ For freedom,
I feel fine." This is repeated ten
times. It gets a little old.
Despite it's weak spots, this is an
excellent album. All of the songs
demonstrate a good understanding of the
plethora of styles used.. Even songs
with sub-standard lyrics have beautiful
musical parts. For example, "How do
you feel" has an amazing Bobby
McFerron-like a capella bass line.
Understated was produced by Theresa
Trull on Iceberg Records. It features
an impressive array of musicians
including Linda Tillery and Teresa
Trull. The Washington Sisters made
their first night-stage festival
appearance at NEWMR in 1985. They
perform regularly around Washington DC,
frequently with the incomparable Jesse
X. Look for them on the festival
circuit again this year.
--Pippa Holloway
Sandra Washington & Sharon Washington
11
trail campsite. In preliminary
hearings, Carr's attorney claimed that
Brenner and Wight had provoked the
attack with their sexual behavior. The
judge ruled such arguments to be
inadmissable.
Wight, 29, was shot in the back and the
head and died at the campsite.
Brenner, 32, who was critically
wounded, got help after walking nearly
four miles to a road.