Gabrielle Hurtt gets inspirational on the first third of Through My Eyes, her new CD. She asserts her independence and individuality on the funky "Shine" and tells the nosy folk to mind their business on "Don’t Judge Me" because with help from above she’s going to always be heading in the right direction. That is the message of the third song, "Guiding Light," a song that makes a musical allusion to the melody from the soap opera The Young and the Restless. Those songs are OK, but Hurtt finds her voice when she flips the script and begins addressing affairs of the heart. Hurtt covers familiar territory such as the finding and losing love, but she does it well. Vocally, Hurtt is a strong and mature singer. Even though she is young, Hurtt doesn’t attempt to dumb down her vocals or her lyrics in order to reach the youth demographic. That shows that she is a confident singer who is more than willing to assert her independence by following her own path. So in a way, the entire album is very inspirational because her song choice over the final seven tracks affirms the positive message that Hurtt puts forth on the first three.
Notable Tracks: My Man Is Gone Now, Under the Influence, This is Where I Came In, God’s Child.
Vocals: 3.5
Lyrics: 3.0
Music: 3.0
Production: 3.0
SoulTracks Call: Recommended
By Howard Dukes
