They say it takes a lifetime to write your first album, and Roberta Lea has lived a full one that informs Too Much of a Woman. Lea, a former high school Spanish teacher and mother of two, brings her self-assurance to bare here. I’ve interviewed Lea several times now, wrote the premiere for the title track on The Boot, and backed the Kickstarter that led to this album’s creation. So, it’s fair to say I’m somewhat partisan here. But it won’t take you long to fall in love with Lea– assuming you haven’t already.
Whether it’s light-hearted country pop like “Girl’s Trip” or the meditative “Dinner, Sunset, Nina Simone,” Lea brings a maturity to her work that’s harder to find in radio-friendly country. These are the songs of someone who’s earned every seemingly lucky break because she’s been through the pitfalls — and come back stronger. At the core of those trials is Lea’s family: this album is as much a testament to Lea’s tenacity as it is to the strength of her community.
We also see Lea playing with the form of country music and claiming space for Black artists within the genre. Her twangified version of “Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone” transforms the cookout-friendly groove into a heady family drama. “Small Town Boy” skewers the all-too-typical provincial pride in country living, celebrating Lea’s cosmopolitan upbringing. The album’s keystone, “Too Much of a Woman,” showcases Lea’s powerful voice while featuring some of the best women and non-binary musicians in the field.
Through it all, Too Much of a Woman is a celebration of everyday life by someone who’s actually lived it — a celebration that is inclusive of all comers while uplifting Lea’s unique experiences. Imagine that.
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