Diane Birch’s Debut Album, Bible Belt – A Review and Giveaway!

In case I haven’t already persuaded you to purchase Diane Birch’s music, here’s a link for a free download of her song, Fire Escape. And, if that wasn’t good enough, you also have a chance to win her CD, Bible Belt. (Details at the end of this post)

From my post about the concert:

From the opening bars of the first song, till her closing bow I was entertained. But, it was more than that. I was stirred. Something deep inside of me was reawakened. The love for music I’ve always had, but had ignored the past few years, was watered and it grew with every song. Diane’s music is more than entertainment. It is art, and it is beautiful. As a music lover, musician, and singer I was extremely impressed. To see a woman with such talent and originality thrilled me. …a  mix of soul, folk, and blues. It was Etta James, Nora Jones, and Elton John all rolled into one, with a smidgen of southern rock thrown in.

Valentino rocked the house. The audience was on their feet and clapping to the rhythm. Hallelujah made my heart sing, and Nothing but a Miracle was a lover’s dance. Even though this wasn’t “Christian” music it stirred my heart to worship and adore the Creator of all music.

While the CD may not be as exciting as a live concert, the music is just as beautiful. It continues to make my soul dance. (And my 2 year old too!) I like that studio versions of songs are always clearer and that the volume can be controlled. I’m so excited to have the CD to play in my car, and to finally have ALL the beautiful songs we heard at the concert!

I was slightly disappointed that the CD’s case was a cardboard fold instead of a full sized jewel case, simply because it will get lost among my CD collection. That is, if it ever makes it into the alphabetical collection of music in my entertainment center… it just might stay in my car forever! The case is beautiful, I’ll give it that, and it safely stores the precious recording as well as an attractive booklet full of photos and credits.

Bio:
For singer-songwriter Diane Birch, music was a refuge. Although Diane was born in Michigan, her childhood was spent on the move as the daughter of a preacher, living between Zimbabwe, South Africa and Australia, before her parents finally settled in Portland, Oregon. When she was in her early teens, Diane absorbed a unique and cosmopolitan perspective on life that shines through her music and makes a simple categorization of it impossible.

The result? Diane Birch sounds like an old favorite, with all the sparkle and magic of a breakthrough talent. People says she sounds like a combination of early Carole King, Linda Ronstadt and Stevie Nicks, with a little Joss Stone and Cat Power mixed in. Bible Belt is only her first record, but it’s one of the most accomplished albums you’ll hear all year. From the opening track “Fire Escape” to the closing “Magic View,” Diane’s stunning voice is mesmerizing.

Written entirely by Diane, Bible Belt was recorded in New York City and New Orleans with an impressive team of Grammy-winning producers: S-Curve Records founder Steve Greenberg, soul legend Betty Wright and Mike Mangini, in their first project together since producing Joss Stone’s first albums.

Giveaway:
Here we go! Are you excited?

One of my readers will be randomly chosen to receive their own Bible Belt CD from Diane Birch.

The contest will run from today thru Wednesday June 17th at 10:AM CST.

To enter : Comment on this post. Or, you can Twitter (up to 3 times a day) but you’ll need to come back and leave me a comment for each tweet!

Tweet: Win a Diane Birch CD! 3 entries per day!  http://www.ericasays.com/?p=819

If you’re too impatient to see if you’ve won you can always purchase the album using the widget in this post, or in the header of my blog!