Review – Heart of a Woman- A Tribute to Etta James

Etta James was one of the pioneers of blues music, a genre known for its portrayal of agony and pain. Unfortunately, however, this tribute to James reserves the agony and pain for the audience, as it must endure the unpleasant and vocally imperfect tones emanating from two of the three performers.

Ironically, the finest singer of the evening is the opening artist, Chelsea Wilson. Whilst she appeared a little nervous in her opening numbers, she exhibited a soulful voice that appeared to stem from a genuine place within her. With added stage experience, she may grow into an accomplished performer.

Following from Chelsea was Henry Manetta, who described his singing style as vocal transmogrification, which is defined as transforming the shape of something (in this case sound) into a bizarre form. His interpretation of Etta James and Ray Charles classics was certainly bizarre, but distinctly unpleasant to the ear, with a terrible nasality to the vocal tone.

The final performer, Ruth Rogers-Wright, insulted both the audience and the late Etta James by relying upon lyrics sheets to manoeuvre through her numbers. This would have been forgivable, perhaps, if the sounds she produced were adequate. Her sound transitioned from barely audible to yelling, displaying improper projection technique.

For the majority of this performance, I felt distinctly uncomfortable, like an Australian Idol judge enduring a walk in from the neighbouring homeless shelter. If you are a big transmogrification fan, you are in for a treat. If you love the way Etta James sung her songs, then your money is better spent on a Best Of CD.