Brooklyn born singer/songwriter BETTE SMITH was brought up in a God-fearing, gospel-singing family and that gospel background can be heard in all her music which sits at the feistier, rockier end of the soul spectrum. Her albums, ‘Jetlagger’ and ‘The Good, The Bad And The Bette’ won her plenty of followers who like their sounds “for real”… the take-no-prisoner sounds of people like Bette Davis, Betty Wright or Tina Turner in her prime.
If you’re a devotee, you’ll be delighted to know that Ms Smith has just unleashed a new single; a single that offers us a generous shot of ‘Tennessee Whiskey’. It’s an old country song that’s been recorded numerous times by people like David Allan Coe, George Jones and Chris Stapleton but, working with former Canned Heat guitarist Harvey Mandel, Bette infuses her ‘Tennessee Whiskey’ with much more spirit! (see what we did there!).
Smith shares “What drew me to ‘Tennessee Whiskey’ was its metaphor for gratitude and how wonderful it feels to be in love. This song just makes you feel happy!” Throughout, you can feel her “feel” for the song. She delivers powerfully while the band cook up an unhurried groove supported by slinky guitar work from Mandel. Cheers!
Find out more about Bette Smith via our 2018 interview… https://www.soulandjazzandfunk.com/interviews/living-the-dream-rab-sensation-bette-smith-talks/
