Irma Thomas: Simply Grand : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

It's easy to read Hurricane Katrina metaphors into everything New Orleans musicians record, but that tragedy runs deep through this set of understated piano-based songs by Crescent City's long-reigning queen of soul. Take "Cold Rain": On the surface, it's a spare, jazzy ballad about a doomed relationship, but when Thomas sings, "Here it comes/No place to run/Nowhere to hide/From this cold rain," her husky voice effectively transforms those simple lyrics into a haunting lament for a city she loved and lost. Piano greats, old and young — Ellis Marsalis, Dr. John, Henry Butler, Randy Newman, John Medeski, Norah Jones — accompany Thomas on these all-acoustic tracks, accentuating the forceful gospel of John Fogerty's "River Is Waiting" and Thomas' sublime take on the Dinah Washington staple "This Bitter Earth." The practice of presenting legends in the raw has become predictable ever since Rick Rubin revived the late Johnny Cash's career, but aside from a few slight missteps here — a bland Burt Bacharach number ("What Can I Do") and a tune that comes off like quiet storm unplugged ("Overrated") — Thomas' versions of these stark, powerful tunes help Simply Grand live up to its title.