Liner Note Author: Rob Bowman.

Recording information: The Sound Factory (05/10/2005-05/13/2005).

Authors: Elvis Costello; Bonnie Raitt.

Photographer: Kevin Estrada.

Bettye Lavette's superlative a cappella rendition of Sinead O'Connor's "I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got" is a fitting opener to this raw collection of covers by women songwriters like Lucinda Williams, Joan Armatrading, and Dolly Parton. The job done by Lavette and her exemplary backing band on this superb deep soul set is so thoroughly transformational as to make these pop, rock, and country songs entirely their own. Her voice is rough and heartfelt, palpably carrying a weight of heartbreak, the musicians' performances are intimate and spontaneous, and the songs, from Parton's "Little Sparrow" to Bobbie Cryner's undiscovered masterpiece, "Just Say So," are impeccably well-chosen.