KAREN DALTON – IN MY OWN TIME (50TH ANNIVERSA

Description

The Oklahoma-raised Karen Dalton (1937-1993) brought a range of influences to her work. As Lenny Kaye writes in the liner notes, one can hear ‘the jazz of Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday, the immersion of Nina Simone, the Appalachian keen of Jean Ritchie, [and] the R&B and country that had to seep in as she made her way to New York’. Producing the album was bassist Harvey Brooks, who played alongside Dalton on ‘It’s So Hard to Tell Who’s Going To Love You The Best’. Brooks, who prided himself on being ‘simple, solid and supportive’, understood Dalton’s process, but was also willing to offer gentle encouragement, and challenge the artist to push her creative bounds.