Po’ Girl

Recently, local Tower Records manager Lynn Brown told me that Po’ Girl’s Vagabond Lullabies was selling like crazy. I’d never heard the group, so I took home the CD to see what all the fuss is about. Po’ Girl is a talented trio of gals—singer/guitarist/clarinetist/pennywhistle player Allison Russell, formerly of Vancouver Celtic folk band Fear of Drinking; singer/guitarist/banjo and harmonica player Trish Klein of the Be Good Tanyas; and singer/fiddler/banjo player/guitarist Diona Davies—who make some rather nice, rootsy music together. The sound is kickback Americana, with everything from old-timey bluesy to folksy to the mellow rap entwined in a couple of tunes (from spoken-word artist C. R. Avery), and it all works. Every song but one is an original. “Part Time Poppa” is a catchy little number, written by Russell and Klein. Russell’s lead vocal on this one (“He’s a part time poppa/ Don’t mean nobody no good…”) is strong and laid-back at the same time, sounding a little like a lovable drunk singing on the front porch.