Debbie Davies

Tales from the Austin Motel (Shanachie)

Listen to "Half-Caf-Decaf"

Smooth and delicious, you consume singer/guitarist Debbie Davies' smooth blues--on this CD, backed by ex-Double Trouble rhythm players Chris Layton (drums) and Tommy Shannon (bass)--a lot like a peanut buster parfait: Although the first half-dozen bites are like heaven, it's so sweet and creamy that by the time you get to the bottom of your plastic bowl, it's tough to swallow. "Just Stepped Into the Blues," the opener, sounds so great, with Davies' guitar mastery--with her decade and a half of hard touring, she's earned her stripes--sounding most worthy to front Stevie Ray's band. The snappy horns, the organs, the whip-crack drums, the perfect riffage still all sound great through the next few tunes; track five, an update of the Willie Dixon classic "I Just Want To Make Love To You," sounds a bit overwrought, as if it was a session warmup tune that accidentally made it onto the CD. As for the rest of the CD, although it's technically perfect and lovely and all that, it's samey enough that it's best to put it down and listen to it some other time. No begrudging Davies the success; her voice seems to pick up another level of dynamic and emotion with each passing album. This particular CD, however, despite its purebred Austin pedigree, seems a bit uninspired. --Don Fluckinger