Reviewed by Ian Phillips.
By Felicity Urquhart & Josh Cunningham, ABC/Universal Music 2021.
Country music star Felicity Urquhart has teamed up with Josh Cunningham of The Waifs for her first release since Frozen Rabbit (2019) which was her most successful album to date, winning her six Golden Guitars including Album of The Year and female Artist of The Year.
It was a bittersweet moment for her because Frozen Rabbit was produced by her late husband Glen Hannah who took his life after the record was completed.
Being able to move on from an experience like that is one thing but achieving it is another, especially when you throw COVID into the mix.
Felicity’s positive outlook has come about through a reconnection with her creativity and song writing is front and centre in that process.
And this is where COVID comes in; Felicity resigned from her long-time position with the ABC hosting the Saturday Night Country radio show and set out to tour her award-winning album through headline shows and festivals but it all came to a crashing halt when everything shut down.
So, what to do next? Go back to what you do best and what makes you happy, write songs.
The Song Club came about because Felicity had been regularly crossing paths with Josh Cunningham at various festivals over the years and they began playing and then writing together.
That connection through music and particularly song writing has also blossomed into romance.
The power of song to heal has helped to mend a broken heart and resulted in a delightful album as well.
Josh and Felicity did everything on the album; wrote the songs, played all the instruments and recorded and produced it themselves.
The Song Club is an enchanting mix of genres with a blending of blues, folk, and country and Josh’s wonderful guitar playing providing highlights.
But the real strength of the album is the songs and the album title is perfectly apt.
These two are gifted musicians and writers who have both experienced the highs and lows of life which naturally is reflected in their songs.
