Eleanor McEvoy has certainly been prolific in recent years, releasing albums almost annually to universal praise, particularly in the UK, where she’s a favourite of the audiophile community thanks to her use of the Super Audio CD format.
On previous outings she’s explored rock, folk, jazz and 1960s pop. This time around, she adopts a more soulful approach. And if the album’s title – a pun on the Etta James’ classic, ‘I’d Rather Go Blind’ – offers a hint of what to expect, there is plenty more here in that vein, including a gently-paced cover of Sam Cooke’s ‘Good Times’. Meanwhile, the Motown-sounding piano riff on ‘The Thought Of You’ will remind some of the Fatboy Slim track ‘Praise You’ as sampled from Camille Yarbrough’s ‘Take Yo’ – but McEvoy makes it all her own on what is undoubtedly one of her more radio-friendly songs.
Lyrically, she blends whimsical, observational humour with ruminations on real life issues. On, ‘Look Like Me’ for example, she takes a well-aimed shot at the fashion fascists and style gurus who dictate dress codes: “I do not think my aim in life is to look like all the rest of the girls I see – looking like each other.”‘
With just drums and plucked strings, the backing is sparse but effective. Meanwhile, the gorgeous harmonies and memorable melody on, ‘Just for the Tourists’ barely conceal a serious issue – that of exploitation of third world countries by casual holidaymakers: “The curious ones who stand and stare… who can’t see the face that haunts you.”
Highlights include the title track, a rush of strings where she castigates an “unsuitable” date: “I’d rather be dead than seen out with you… I’d rather go blonde”; ‘Take You Home’ a gradually building ballad that recalls Sarah McLachlan vocally; and the delicious ‘Harbour’.
Another welcome addition to the McEvoy canon – can a box set be far away?