Lou Ann Barton is the most commanding white female belter to erupt out of Texas since Janis Joplin – a singer to whom, in terms of vocal sophistication and emotional projection, Barton is far, far superior. I know this sounds like hype, and I say it hesitantly: it was exactly this sort of overloaded kudos that scuttled Barton's first attempted liftoff five years ago. But, hey, she's that good...

The Bush-era machismo of the title aside, it's hard to imagine that anyone would need to venture beyond the sound of Lou Ann Barton's third album – or the expanse of leg she flashes on the album's cover – to understand that this woman means nasty business. At age thirty-five, after nearly two decades of live performance, this formidable Texas singer has pulled together a set of her...

Due to the busy schedules of Marcia Ball, Angela Strehli, Lou Ann Barton and producer Mac "Dr. John" Rebennack, Dreams Come True took five years to make. As testimony to its spontaneous vitality, the album sounds as if it had been cut in a day.

These three women – the first ladies of the Austin, Texas, rhythm & blues scene – are not coy or cool. They attack this collection of venerable...