Judith Owen is on road with Bryan Ferry but she managed to steal a few minutes in front of a camera while the tour bus sat idle this week.
In the Spring of 2014, I had a chance to speak to Judith Owen at her Slipper Room show. She had recently put together her dream band of Leland Sklar on bass, Russ Kunkel on drums, and Waddy Wachtel on guitar. These were guys whose names she first saw in the credits to some of her favorite albums growing up by artists like James Taylor, Carole King, Jackson Browne, Linda Ronstadt, Stevie Nicks, Carly Simon, Warren Zevon, Neil Young, and Crosby, Stills, and Nash. Owen’s own music was deeply connected to the classic era of singer/songwriters and the Laurel Canyon sound which her chosen personnel had done so much to help create. Her new album at the time was Ebb & Flow.
The follow-up to Ebb & Flow from the New Orleans based Welsh songstress is Somebody’s Child. The album features the same core four as on the previous album and adds flavors from percussionist Pedro Segundo and cellist Gabriella Swallow. This Friday night at The Iridium, you can catch Judith Owen and her band featuring Sklar and, on strings, Swallow as well as violinist Lizzie Ball. The concert marks the end of a month long festival at Iridium celebrating women inspired by Women’s History Month. Owen remarked that’s she thrilled to be part of the event as she looked up to women who manifested power on stage like Kate Bush, Annie Lenox, and Aretha Franklin as well as the aforementioned Carole King. Now she follows in a line of impressive talent that preceded her at the Times Square venue this month including Shemekia Copeland, Meshell Ndegeocello, and Dana Fuchs in the series billed as Her Story Her Voice.
