Songs:
1) A Million Stories
2) Many Miles to Go
3) Don't Bother
4) Everything I See
5) Three Between Us
6) It Is What It Is
7) Fly
8) Summertime
9) Just Give Me Tonight
10) Flicker
11) Stranger Things
12) Horrible Moon
13) Mile High Monkey
14) Broken Girl

"Hometown CD," 8-9-07
Album: A Million Stories (2007)

There's no reason Barbara Nesbitt is still unsigned, no reason she's not touring the West Coast (at least). Opening for national touring country acts should be the first order of business for whatever label is smart enough to sign her.

Nesbitt's voice moans through the soft lyrics about night, growls in the frustration of relationships, and breaks -- high, sweet, and full -- with longing heartache. In a sultry, sugary, softly gritty voice competition, she'd give Bonnie Raitt a run for her money. On the chorus of "Mile High Monkey," when she hits the chorus, "I'm so sweet I'm sinking," her vocal cords ring like gold.

A host of keyboard instruments (organ, Wurlitzer) and all of the string instruments (Dobro, banjo, mandolin) create a country version of an orchestra, rising with Nesbitt's voice, building and paying off in perfect time.

Her one fault might be that she's playing it a little too safe. Except for a few well-placed curse words (on "It Is What It Is" and "Flicker"), she doesn't venture much outside of the "safe" box. I'd like to hear Nesbitt stretch her honky-tonk legs the way Neko Case did with her song "Deep Red Bells" or even to experiment with timing and tone. Nesbitt's good enough; she can break the rules a little more.