Tell The World
By Mike O’Cull
Southwest Missouri blues/funk/soul outfit Sister Lucille turns in a set of exceptional songs and performances on their sophomore album Tell The World.
The record comes out March 17th, 2023 on the female-owned Blue Heart Records imprint and is one of the finest collections of genre-bending, contemporary roots music you’re going to encounter this year. Dawn Hopkins and Reba Russell recorded, engineered, and co-produced the album at High/Low Studios in Memphis and did an outstanding job of capturing one of the USA’s most vital emerging bands at the peak of their magic.
Sister Lucille is based in the Memphis traditions of blues, roots, and soul and extends them by folding in jam band and funk ideas. Power alto lead vocalist Kimberly Dill is the immediate focus of their sound and for good reason. Her lower tones are seductive and strong in ways no soprano can match and her presence on the microphone is positively mesmerizing.
Dill wrote or co-wrote most of the songs on Tell The World with band guitarist and vocalist Jamie Holdren and put them down in the studio with the snapping rhythm section of Kevin Lyons on drums and percussion and Reed Smith Herron on bass. Special guests Chris Stephenson and Al Gamble on keys, Peter Climie on sax, Will Paladino on trumpet, Freedman Steorts on trombone, and Reba Russell on backup vocals help expand the four at the core.
Sister Lucille has been turning heads around since their 2019 debut album, Alive, enjoyed 22 straight months on Roots Music Report’s Top 50 Blues-Rock Album Chart, with all 11 songs hitting the Top 50 Blues-Rock Song Chart for multi-month stints. The album won the 2020 Blues Blast Award for Best Debut CD and also received three Independent Blues Award Nominations. The band has garnered much critical praise and looks to be on the road to becoming one of the top new acts on the scene.
The record kicks off with its title track “Tell The World.” It’s an all-out, horn-driven rocker loaded with the exuberance of falling in love. A fierce, quarter note pulse pushes the song forward and gives Dill and guitarist Jamie Holdren all the juice they need to light up the sky. Holdren is a ripping player with an excellent sound and killer instincts that mesh well with Dill and her big voice.
“Everytime I Leave” is more somber and soulful, expressing love’s more difficult moments. The chill, late-night vibe here lets Dill show us another side of her multifaceted skills and her emotional nuance will hit you hard. Holdren shines again on guitar, as well, crafting sinewy lines that match Dill’s simmering intensity. Of course he sings, too, and takes the lead vocal spot on the funky “Breakin’ My Heart” like a boss.
“Why Not You” feat. Reba Russel
Dill sings from the perspective of B.B. King’s guitar on the minor key “My Name Is Lucille.” It’s a spirit-stirring number that will catch your emotions off-guard in an amazing and original way that could easily make this a standard for a new generation. As a band, Sister Lucille has that timeless quality the greats always exhibit and they definitely let us hear it on this one. The vocal and guitar performances on it are indelible.
The upbeat blues of “Soulful Dress” closes out Tell The World and its joyous vibe will absolutely leave you wanting more. Dill, Holdren, and the entire band show all the way up on it and it will instantly pull you out of your seat and get you ready to party. Sister Lucille is on the verge of a major blow-up and are one of the current bands building the future of American music. Based on the sound of these songs, you’re going to want to be part of it. Highly recommended.
And they are every bit as good live as they are on the disc!