Almost

Reviews:
from the Minneapolis Star Tribune by Chris Reimenschneider:
Alison Scott: Singing with TLC
The singer fought to add one of her
favorite '90s songs on her new
album, and she'll battle for much
more at the release party.

By CHRIS RIEMENSCHNEIDER, Star Tribune
Last update: September 11, 2010 - 3:36 PM

For the most part, Alison Scott says it's
wonderful having veteran male musicians in
her backing band, especially since they're all
guys who probably could be doing other
things but believe in her talent.
One exception so far, though, might have
been when she suggested to "the boys" that
they cover the classic TLC ballad "Waterfalls."
The ubiquitous pop hit meant everything to a
13-year-old girl in 1995.
"That's prime material from my middle-
school experience, so the nostalgia factor is
obviously a lot higher for me than it is for
them," said Scott, 27, crediting bassist Steve
Price for buying the idea right away. But she
had to sell the song to drummer Peter
Anderson and her guitarist, producer and
manager, Kevin Bowe.

"We usually cover older material, so it took
some convincing. I made them at least try it.
And as soon as we did, everybody loved it."
"Waterfalls" wound up being one of the best
tracks on Scott's most formative album to
date, and it's the kind of recording that
shows how this singer/pianist from the
western burbs (Plymouth, to be exact) can
inject ample amounts of Southern soul and
muddy grit into her music despite her vanilla,
middle-America background. She even
surprisingly passes for a convincing rapper
in her remake of the TLC song.
Titled "Chinese Whispers," Scott's third
album will be celebrated Saturday at the
Fitzgerald Theater, another step up the venue
ladder for the rock/R&B/soul singer, whose
last CD party (for the new-standards disc
"Hiding Under the Covers") was at the Dakota,
and whose very first performance as an
original songwriter was the release show for
her 2007 debut album at the Varsity Theater.
She's more proud of the fact that Saturday's
show doubles as a breast-cancer fundraiser.
Her mother is a cancer survivor and her
special musical guest at the Fitz, beloved
local picker Molly Maher, recently completed
chemotherapy. Proceeds benefit Hope Chest,
which is hosting a pre-party at nearby McNally Smith College of Music.
A product of the reputable Wayzata school
music programs, Scott studied musical
theater and even opera after high school
before applying her powerful voice to her
own songs. She was studying at McNally
Smith when she caught the attention of Bowe,
a producer (Shannon Curfman, Renee
Austin), songwriter (Jonny Lang, Etta James)
and guitarist (Paul Westerberg's last tour). He
was judging a songwriting competition that
Scott won, and the two collaborated on her
first album.
"I think Kevin's plan was to make the record
and send me on my way," she recalled, "but
by the end of it, it was pretty clear we worked
well together."
Since then, Scott has also welcomed to her
band Price (bassist with the Suburbs of late)
and Anderson (Honeydogs, Polara). After a
couple years of steady performances -- "The
game plan at first was to never turn down a
gig," she said -- the tight unit has manifested
on CD. "Chinese Whispers" is more diverse,
up-tempo and just plain rockier than her
prior discs, thanks in large part to the band.
Scott's backers also clearly helped boost her
confidence, as she takes on a wide range of

serious subjects in the new songs, including
the economy ("Upside Down"), unwanted
pregnancy ("Rock Me Sweetly") and fidelity
(the disc opener "So Why").
"I wrote 'So Why' when I was about two
weeks away from walking down the aisle, and i
t's about stealing another woman's man,"
Scott laughingly recalled. She quickly added
that the song in no way reflects her own
marriage of two years: "That should tell you
that a lot of what I write isn't really about my
own personal life."
Scott could write quite a personal song about
her roller-coaster experience during another
music competition in April. That's when
KQRS declared her a winner in a contest to
open for Bon Jovi at Xcel Energy Center, but
then said she really didn't win -- and then
gave her the gig anyway. The station
reportedly miscounted the votes, and Jon
Bon Jovi himself insisted Scott play the show.
"It probably turned out better in the end,
since I actually got to meet Jon Bon Jovi and
earned more attention off it," Scott said.
Even though she's only 1-1 in music
contests, Scott can still boast of having a
winning record.