Jill Stevenson – 1308 Ditmas

Jill Stevenson, 1308 Ditmas

The most puzzling thing about Jill Stevenson’s new album 1308 Ditmas is the title. What the heck is a ditma? and what is the significance of 1308 of them? We asked Google and eventually figured out that Ditmas is the name of a street and 1308 is the address. Stevenson informs us that this is whereshe was living when she wrote many of the songs on this album. Jill Stevenson moved out to the Big Apple a year or so back to improve her odds in the music biz, but she still has family in the Denver area, so she comes back once or twice a year and we feel comfortable claiming her as a local artist. Now that we’ve got that out of the way, lets consider the music. Eleven tracks of original music by herself and one or two songwriting buddies. All of it excellent! Mostly singer-songwriter stuff leaning toward light rock, but we can imagine some of these becoming really powerful with a full band and a quicker tempo. Stevenson’s vocals always have very warm comfortable feel. The lyrics are understandable (without a lyric sheet) and some are catchy like all the thank yous in “This Time Around” and “Whatever it is” in the song of the same name. Some pull at your heart, like “Believe” and all of them are amazing for twenty two year old girl. The guitar and piano, which she plays are very good, although she’s not trying to blow anyone away with her playing. Jill’s just playing as much as needed without going overboard. The production quality is as good as anything out there, better than most. Some interwoven harmonies on “Roll Again” and strings on “Show You” indicate that she spent some quality in the studio.
Overall, we find this CD immensely satisfying and recommend that you buy it.
For more info please visit: www.JillStevenson.com