RHIANNON GIDDENS — ‘FREEDOM HIGHWAY’ (NONESUCH)
From the opening track off Rhiannon Giddens’ latest solo project, “Freedom Highway,” it’s clear that this album will be a journey for the listeners, a necessary journey to examine our world and ourselves. With her haunting voice that echoes in your head, Giddens cries in the chorus of “At the Purchaser’s Option” that “You can take my body / You can take my bones / You can take my blood / But not my soul.” She’s singing a story about slavery and the horrific realities of the institution. That opening track sets up a deep, personal album exploring the life and history of African-Americans through powerful stories, with sounds from banjo to hip-hop that closes gaps across genres rather than just spanning genres. Giddens voice pulls from gospel, soul, blues and folk with an unmatched intensity. That’s clear on “Birmingham Sunday” (written by Richard Farina about the 1963 16th Street Baptist Church bombings that killed four girls and injured 22), one of many songs here that left me with goose bumps thanks to Giddens’ unique interpretation and performance. The album is wholly a remarkable piece of storytelling and art that is fitting for a 2017 recipient of the MacAruthur Foundation “Genius Grant.”
The Oklahoma native protest singer and songwriter Woody Guthrie said a folk song is what’s wrong and how to fix it. This album looks at not just what’s wrong, but how it became so wrong and finding the hope we need to fix it. A cover of The Staple Singers’ 1965 civil rights song “Freedom Highway” serves as the title track, as well as the last song to stick with listeners, in which she sings: “Made up my mind / That I won’t turn around.” Giddens’ album inspires people to keep marching.