Welcome to the official web site of Christine Ohlman!

Selected Quotes:

"There are so many 'wow' moments"
Dave Marsh, SIRIUS/XM Radio personality / Rolling Stone editor emeritus

"Whatever she touches becomes soulful and passionate. Ohlman always sounds like her born-to-be-bad self, belting out songs like the spitfire she is. It's that swagger combined with tenderness that makes her so compelling... the perfect balance of raw soul and gutsy rock. Perhaps the most powerful and potent moment is the title track, a gospel-infused swamp ballad that seems autobiographical, especially when she sings that she's 'hard to handle, the excitable kind/take off runnin' when I could've walked.' Ohlman never flinches from the hard stuff and throughout The Deep End, she dives in like the classic soul kings and queens she idolizes."
Hal Horowitz, The All Music Guide

"The Deep End insists on telling the truth until it alters perceptions of love and loss and how it all works, especially when it falls apart so tragically as that which produced this work of art. Here comes the sun, healing and transcendent."
The Bluegrass Special / www.thebluegrassspecial.com

"Ohlman and Rebel Montez concoct a Soul atmosphere as thick and palpable as a humid Southern night. Ohlman’s voice is a dusky, supple thing of dark Soul beauty, like a gene splice of Dusty Springfield and Delbert McClinton. She sells the album’s handful of covers with aching authenticity, from her duets with Marshall Crenshaw on the Marvin Gaye/Mary Wells classic “What’s the Matter with You Baby” and with the incomparable Dion on “Cry Baby Cry.” But the standouts on The Deep End are Ohlman’s stunning originals, which blister and soothe in equal measure."
Brian Baker, Cincinnati CityBeat

"The husky-voiced singer is a full-package talent, a dynamic rocker who draws on soul and blues in ways that give her music a classic feel even as it pulses with her own personality. Make no mistake: If Ian Hunter, Dion DiMucci, Marshall Crenshaw, Levon Helm, G.E. Smith, Big Al Anderson, and Eric Ambel draw you into The Deep End, it's Ohlman who ends up making the biggest impression. As in: 'Wow'." Nick Cristiano, Philadelphia Inquirer (syndicated)

"Expect this album to pepper a few best-of lists in December. The songs on The Deep End draw as much upon gospel and urban doo-wop as they do blues and Americana. “I surrender to the rhythm in my blood”, Ohlman sings in 'Like Honey'. Me too, Christine, me too.”
Bill Holmes, www.popmatters.com

“Christine Ohlman and her band Rebel Montez have just released their sixth studio album, The Deep End, to what will undoubtedly be rave critical acclaim. Let it begin here. It’s staggering!" www.thealternateroot.com

"The record, like any good bit of love, has layers: not so much warning as honest admission - or perhaps understanding - of love's varied means and ends. In fact, the blues isn't always about being sad, but simply allowing room for the myriad reaches and complexities of emotion."
Kim Ruehl, NoDepression.com

"There's a wondrous familiarity and traditionalism in Christine Ohlman's old-school, rough-hewn, Southern-soul roots rock... (she) is loyal and true to her roots while setting herself audacious new challenges: deeply impressive."
Chris Arnott, The Advocate, New Haven, CT

"If you give "The Deep End" a spin, you'll be an Ohlman fan for life." (4 stars)
The Daily News, McKeesport, PA (Pittsburgh Metro)

"As a singer, Ohlman makes each song sound like a prime cut on a jukebox in a Memphis barbecue joint. Hit(s) the sweet spot, straight and true."
Vintage Guitar Magazine July, 2010

“In its original form, rock n' roll was a blend of blues, country and gospel. Christine Ohlman practices rock the old-fashioned way. Like the music she makes, Ohlman seems timeless.”
Eric Danton, The Courant /Hartford, CT

“[Ohlman] sings in a gutsy rock ‘n’ roll voice edged in soul and blues, part Bonnie Raitt and part Genya Raven, with an element of Van Morrison’s early wildness. Her throwback sound combines the romanticism of Brill Building pop and horn-fed Stax muscle (courtesy of the Asbury Jukes’ Chris Anderson and Neal Pawley) into a potent rock ‘n’ roll stew. Ohlman’s band is similarly road-tested (the bass of Michael Colbath is particularly notable).”
www.hyperbolium.com

"The “Beehive Queen” is a hard rocking Memphis soul fueled dynamo, and The Deep End may be her finest album yet...absolutely beautiful."
Michael Buffalo Smith, Gritz Magazine

"'Cry Baby Cry' (a duet with Dion) ought to be blasting out of a '55 Chevy radio on a hot summer night" Wayne Blesdoe, Knoxville News-Sentinel

“I do have a favorite, however, and it’s another example of the cache that Christine Ohlman carries within the music world… enlisting the services of rock legend Dion DiMucci to sing with Ohlman on the gospel-tinged ‘Cry Baby Cry’ is a great touch.”
Reb Landers, www.thealternateroot.com

"Ohlman exudes rock and soul authenticity from her wailing vocals to her beehive hairdo..a confident, cool and street-savy diva."
M Music and Musicians (successor to Performing Songwriter)

"Christine Ohlman is the 21st Century real-deal Queen Bee Of Rock n' Roll"
Bill Nolan, Host of "Antique Blues" WPKN-FM (syndicated)

"A perfect concoction of musicianship and road weary soaked vocals....making the disc a solid listen is the wonderful group of musicians, Rebel Montez, who really add an exceptional backing groove to these 15 tracks and gives it an A-plus sheen. The Deep End is a diamond in the rough."
Carl Cortez, iF Magazine

"A collection of bluesy and soul-infused rockers and ballads with emotional, heartfelt lyrics of love and loss, The Deep End is Ohlman's most complete and accomplished work."
Paul Rosano, "The Trick Is Music"

"The Beehive Queen has never sounded better"
Andrew Loog Oldham, Producer, The Rolling Stones / SIRIUS/XM Radio personality

TOP 50 SONGS OF 2009 - Howard Thompson's North Fork Sound

THE NEW HAVEN REGISTER
"A rip-roaring blast of rock 'n' roll; a blues-influenced guitar rave-up."
- Pat Ferrucci, The New Haven Register (New Haven, CT)
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ALL MUSIC GUIDE
Soul-rock vocalist/songwriter Christine Ohlman's first album of original material since 2003 and the death of her producer/partner Doc Cavalier could easily have been a sober, downbeat affair. Thankfully, although there are a few reflective references to him, most obviously the ballad "The Gone of You" (performed in both electric and a more intimate, eerie and poignant "after-hours" demo version), the album rocks as hard and intensely as anything the Beehive Queen has released, and that's saying lots. But it's the R&B-punched rockers that dominate this eclectic set and find Ohlman shifting from the Stonesy grind of "Love Make You do Stupid Things" and "Bring It with You When You Come," to the easy-rolling "Love You Right" and the acoustic folk-country "Girl Growing Up." Whatever she touches becomes soulful and passionate, even when she's taking the playful Mary Wells part and trading verses with Marshall Crenshaw (filling in for Marvin Gaye), on the old Motown fingersnapper "What's the Matter with You Baby." There are plenty of vocal references toDusty Springfield, Bonnie Bramlett, Joan Osborne, Genya Ravan, Etta James, and of course Ronnie Spector, whose notorious big hair has inspired her own coif. But Ohlman always sounds like her born-to-be-bad self, belting out songs like the spitfire she is. Ian Hunter swings by to provide backup on the opening cowbell-driven grinder "There Ain't No Cure," although he's buried pretty low in the mix. When Ohlman sings "I'm gonna call you up in the middle of the night/I've got the midnight shakes, I just can't get right" she exudes the sassy mix of aggression, sexuality, and desire that those words convey. It's that swagger combined with tenderness that makes her so compelling, and transforms the post-Hurricane Katrina homage to New Orleans, "The Cradle Did Rock," into a touching tribute to a broken city. Echoes of the Rascals on "Born to Be Together" find the perfect balance of raw soul and gutsy rock that powers Ohlman's best material, most of it original. Horns pepper the thumping "Everybody Got a Heartache" and appear occasionally throughout the disc. But perhaps the most powerful and potent moment is the title track, a gospel-infused swamp ballad that seems autobiographical, especially when she sings that she's "hard to handle, the excitable kind/take off runnin' when I could've walked." Ohlman never flinches from the hard stuff and throughout the Deep End, she dives in like the classic soul kings and queens she idolizes.
- Hal Horowitz

ELMORE MAGAZINE: January/February 2010

"On her latest record, seasoned R&B chanteuse Christine Ohlman writes and sings about human interactions, from irresistible sex to true love and, ultimately, unbelievable loss. There's never a doubt that Ohlman is singing from an experienced heart. While her powerful voice allows her to belt out numbers with the horn-fueled Saturday Night Live band, she can also sing with intelligence and emotional control, making her passionate moments more effective. Assisted by her band, Rebel Montez, an all-star lineup of contributors and co-producer Andy York, Ohlman shines up all 15 tracks with her beehive artistry.

Starting out red-hot, Ohlman and Ian Hunter deliver a lascivious duet on "There Ain't No Cure," followed by the gently flowing "The Deep End," an earnest testament of abiding love. On "Cry Baby Cry," she trades desperate lyrics with Dion. Her cover of the Marvin Gaye/Mary Wells hit "What's The Matter With You Baby" bops along joyously thanks to Ohlman and Marshall Crenshaw's charming interplay and Levon Helm's dancing beats. Ohlman wrote the lament for New Orleans "The Cradle Did Rock" after being at Mardi Gras in 2006. "Walkin' Down The Street Called Love," recorded live, features Ohlman's longtime guitarist, the late Eric Fletcher.

The most heartfelt performance is also the most heartbreaking: "The Gone Of You," probably written for Ohlman's longtime partner and producer Doc Cavalier who passed in 2005, throbs with longing, a painfully intimate glimpse of the suffering the loss of a mate can bring. Ohlman and York underline its significance by including two versions: the first with the band and the second, which closes the record, the "After Hours" version which combines Ohlman's vocals with York's instrumentation and "technical voodoo."

- Kay Cordtz

THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER (Syndicated) April, 2010

Christine Ohlman is the blond, beehived singer with the Saturday Night Live band. She also has notable musical friends, several of whom appear on her new album. But make no mistake: If Ian Hunter, Dion DiMucci, Marshall Crenshaw, Levon Helm, G.E. Smith, Big Al Anderson, and Eric Ambel draw you into The Deep End, it's Ohlman who ends up making the biggest impression. As in: Wow.

The husky-voiced singer is a full-package talent, a dynamic rocker who draws on soul and blues in ways that give her music a classic feel even as it pulses with her own personality. The album title is telling: As a writer Ohlman digs pretty deep here, drawing on personal loss. From the title song (with Hunter) through the post-Katrina lament "The Cradle Did Rock" and on to "The Gone of You," it's not always a joyride in an emotional sense. But it all hits home, and her originals stand up to her superb revivals of an old Southern soul gem ("Cry Baby Cry," with Dion), a Motown nugget (Marvin Gaye and Mary Wells' "What's the Matter With You Baby," with Crenshaw), and Link Wray's "Walking Down the Street Called Love."

After hearing this knockout, you'll no doubt want to check out Ohlman's earlier work. A good place to start is with the 2008 compilation Re-Hive. ***1/2

-Nick Cristiano

WWW.POPMATTERS.COM

What a pity that when Christine Ohlman is recognized, it’s usually from her association with the Saturday Night Live band. Most people are missing out albums filled with her dynamic songwriting and powerful vocals, but perhaps the fifth time is the charm. Fifteen years removed from her debut album, The Hard Way, the Beehive Queen has not only recorded her strongest effort to date, but an album that should pepper several best-of lists in December.

The songs on The Deep End draw as much upon gospel and urban doo-wop as they do blues and Americana, perhaps reaching the apex on the hypnotic title track. “Love You Right” sounds like it was ripped from the catalogue of the Del Lords, while the acoustic “Girl Growing Up” recalls the soulful power of Dusty Springfield. “The Gone of You” (in band and demo versions) is a bluesy, poignant tribute to loss; both producer Doc Cavalier and guitarist Eric Fletcher died since her last album. Musicologist Ohlman has long had the rep for unearthing little-known gems; here the standout is the emotional soul chestnut “Cry Baby Cry” (a duet with Dion). Other spirited guest turns employ Al Anderson, Marshall Crenshaw, Levon Helm, Eric Ambel, and Ian Hunter.

“I surrender to the rhythm in my blood”, Ohlman sings in “Like Honey”. Me too, Christine, me too. (Rating: 8 out of 10)

—Bill Holmes

THE NEW HAVEN ADVOCATE November 2009

"There's a wondrous familiarity and traditionalism in Christine Ohlman's old-school, rough-hewn, Southern-soul roots rock. With her husky voice and formidable hairdo, the "Beehive Queen" has been a powerhouse presence in Connecticut bars and clubs - and in the house band of TV's "Saturday Night Live" - for decades. But it's with her stripped-down quartet Rebel Montez that Ohlman has done her most distinctive work. As a singer she can mix it up mightily with guest vocalists Ian Hunter, Dion DiMucci and Marshall Crenshaw, and wail alongside guitar solos from Al Anderson, Andy York, her old Scratch Band buddy G.E. Smith and new bandmate Cliff Goodwin. (This album is still mourning Rebel Montez guitarist Eric Fletcher, who died in 2006 and can be heard playing on a live radio studio rendition of "Walkin' Down the Street Called Love.") But Ohlman especially shines as a songwriter, leavening gruff roots-rock reality with a soulwrenching after-midnight despondency that lets this CD truly earn its title. Ohlman is loyal and true to her roots while setting herself audacious new challenges: deeply impressive."

-Christopher Arnott / New Haven Advocate (New Haven, CT)
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THE ALTERNATE ROOT.COM
CHRISTINE OHLMAN: GIRL GROWING UP

Imagine yourself singing at Bob Dylan’s 30th Anniversary Concert at Madison Square Garden, then imagine you are singing at President Obama’s Innauguration party, suppose you add in being the long standing vocalist for the legendary Saturday Night Live Band...still with me? Imagine you are singing in front of hundreds of thousands of people in Central Park fronting Big Brother and The Holding Company in tribute to Janis Joplin...you’re dreaming right? Nope, you’re Christine Ohlman and those are just a few of the things that stand out on your incredible resume. There’s more; plenty more.

Christine Ohlman and her band Rebel Montez have just released their sixth studio album, The Deep End, to what will undoubtedly be rave critical acclaim. Let it begin here. It’s staggering! From the opening number, There Ain’t No Cure, a duet with Ian Hunter the album rumbles through a mix of blues, rock and soul with authority and authenticity aided by some renowned innovators and Ohlman’s rock steady band.

The title track calls on the guitar services of former NRBQ legend Big Al Anderson for the Springsteen-esque slow rocker that immerses the audience in the warm waters of Ohlman’s soulful voice. The Deep End is lyrically powerful; painting an expression of the albums recurring theme, love, as both an immovable object and an irresistable force.

Ohlman invites the collision of those two forces with equal fervor throughout, even stepping on the gas from both sides...this ain’t no sappy love song album, no sir!

Eric ‘Roscoe’ Ambel bends the bee- hive on the track ‘Love Make You Do Stupid Things’ a particularly vivid look at the addictive power of love with a raunchy blues soundtrack. I can see the hot blonde in the leopard print dress rumbling down the highway in a ‘62 Eldorado, mascara running and all. No one plays that trashy Peter Gunn in- fused style like Roscoe Ambel. That was a good call.

If the best of 90’s roots rock isn’t retro yet ‘Love You Right’ may help the cause. Big Al Anderson returns to add his unmistakeable fills and immediately I was reminiscing about Lone Justice, The Beat Farmers and the Del Lords. Ohlman matches the many facets of her vocal repertoire with an uncanny ability to craft a wide variety of musical styles and master them all. This is one of my favorite songs on an album full of really fun songs to listen to.

I do have a favorite however and it’s another example of the cache that Christine Ohlman carries within the music world paired with good decision making by producers Andy York, Ohlman and Vic Steffens. Enlisting the services of rock legend Dion DiMucci to sing with Ohlman on the gospel tinged ‘Cry Baby Cry’ is a great touch.

DiMucci and Ohlman trade off each other in a Girl Group meets Doo-Wop trio rumble complete with talking vocals. Ohlman has her rock and roll history book tucked under her arm as she pays homage to the vocal group greats of the 1960’s Ronnie Spector, (The Ronnetes), Mary Weiss (Shangri-Las), Judy Craig (Chiffons) among many others. ‘Cry Baby Cry’ had me from the first church organ notes and left me wanting more.

I did get more. Did I mention the Shangri-Las? ‘What’s The Matter With You Baby’ features Marshall Crenshaw along side Ohlman once again. (The two shared the spotlight on the Nick Lowe retrospective ‘Labour of Love’ singing the classic ‘Cruel to be Kind.’) The combination of Crenshaw, Ohlman and a really good song once again produced a magical moment and I haven’t even mentioned the tasty drumming of Levon Helm. This song reminded me of the glorious heyday of 60’s soul music when the Essex, The Shangri-Las and Ruby and the Romantics ruled the earth.

There’s a full fifteen songs on ‘The Deep End’ with little if any filler. Each of these tracks stands on their own even without the addition of well known participants. Rebel Montez is a formidable combo made up of seasoned veterans Michael Colbath (bass), Larry Donahue (drums) and Cliff Goodwin (guitar, vocals). While they may stand on the side for moments of this album, their presence and versatility is felt throughout.

You get a lot of free music in this line of work and it’s easy to get spoiled. Occasionaly I get an album in that had I not gotten it to review I would have gone out and bought it...just to review. This is one of those albums.
– Danny McCloskey, TheAlternateRoot.com

VINTAGE GUITAR MAGAZINE, JULY, 2010

The beehive-haired soul diva of the Saturday Night Live Band offers a collection of mostly original soul and country songs (often mixed together, as in “Girl Growing Up” that thit the sweet spot, straight and true. Ohlman and her band, Rebel Montez, get it right just about every time; from the honey-sweet sensuousness of “The Gone Of You” to the Steve Cropper/Booker T. Jones inspired “Everybody Got A Heartache” which gives SNL alumnus G.E. Smith a chance to strut his stuff. The title cut, meanwhile, features guest guitar from Al Anderson. Ohlman is a fine player, too, although she confines herself to acoustic while handing over lead to guests like Smith, Anderson, Marshall Crenshaw, Cliff Goodwin, and co-producer Andy York.

Ohlman, Goodwin and York have all contingencies covered on guitar—the examples being “The Gone Of You (After Hours)” and “Like Honey.” And as a singer, Ohlman, a Bronx-born musicologist and session veteran, makes each song sound like a prime cut on a jukebox in a Memphis barbecue joint.

CINCINATTI CITYBEAT

Brian Baker www.citybeat.com

If the name Christine Ohlman doesn’t spark any memory cells, one look at her photo will remind you that she is the long tenured chick vocalist with the impossibly high bouffant in the Saturday Night Live house band. Ohlman began her career nearly three decades ago with G.E. Smith‘s Scratch Band, which gave her an in for the SNL gig; she ultimately formed the Rebel Montez band and released three studio albums (1995’s The Hard Way, 1999’s Wicked Time, 2003’s Strip) and a live set (1997’s Radio Queen) while maintaining her bee-hived presence on SNL.

Ohlman has been on studio hiatus for the past seven years, recovering from the deaths of her producer/significant other Doc Cavalier and founding Rebel Montez guitarist Eric Fletcher. With Rebel Montez newly reconstituted, Ohlman collaborated with John Mellencamp producer Andy York to create what may stand as Ohlman’s Soul/Pop/Blues masterwork, The Deep End.

Frontloaded with a stellar array of guests (G.E. Smith, producer/artist Eric “Roscoe” Ambel, former NRBQ guitarist Al Anderson, the Asbury Jukes horns, among others), Ohlman and Rebel Montez concoct a Soul atmosphere as thick and palpable as a humid Southern night. Ohlman’s voice is a dusky, supple thing of dark Soul beauty, like a gene splice of Dusty Springfield and Delbert McClinton. She sells the album’s handful of covers with aching authenticity, from her duets with Marshall Crenshaw on the Marvin Gaye/Mary Wells classic “What’s the Matter With You Baby” and with the incomparable Dion on “Cry Baby Cry.”

But the standouts on The Deep End are Ohlman’s stunning originals, which blister and soothe in equal measure. “There Ain’t No Cure” slinks and smokes even without vocal assistance from Ian Hunter; the choogling “Love Make You Do Stupid Things” bristles with the exhilaration of a bar band doing CCR covers behind chicken wire; and “Bring It With You When You Come” swings like Dusty fronting Rockpile. And when Ohlman slows it down (the title track, “Like Honey,” “The Cradle Did Rock”), she nails a soulful swagger that would make Bruce Springsteen investigate clearance rights.

Christine Ohlman and Rebel Montez have been away for good reason but for far too long. Welcome backs don‘t come any more welcome than The Deep End.

HYPERBOLIOM.COM
Christine Ohlman & Rebel Montez: The Deep End
SNL singer serves up rock ‘n’ roll with a side of Stax

Rock ‘n’ roll women have always been a sparser commodity than their male counterparts. Even the adjective that describes a forceful rock ‘n’ roll performance discriminates with its anatomical reference. Rock’s had a few chart-topping female stars, including Wanda Jackson, Janis Joplin, Ann Wilson, Joan Jett and Pat Benatar, but the bulk of female rockers labor in day jobs that overshadow their solo output, or work in local obscurity. Patty Scialfa’s better known for her marriage and membership in the E Street Band than for her three releases, Karla DeVito is remembered more for the video she made with Meat Loaf (on which she lip-synched Ellen Foley’s vocal) than her solo album and subsequent song writing, and Ronnie Spector took decades to emerge from the shadow of her former husband and producer.

Christine Ohlman, who’s twenty-year gig with the Saturday Night Live Band has put her voice in the ears of millions of listeners, has released six albums and contributed vocals to dozens of projects, yet remains more of a cult favorite than a name star. She sings in a gutsy rock ‘n’ roll voice edged in soul and blues, part Bonnie Raitt and part Genya Raven, with an element of Van Morrison’s early wildness. Her throwback sound combines the romanticism of Brill Building pop and horn-fed Stax muscle (courtesy of the Asbury Jukes’ Chris Anderson and Neal Pawley) into a potent rock ‘n’ roll stew. Her music reaches back to a time when guitars were front and center and bass lines propelled dancers to the floor.

The album opens with Ohlman growling her lovesickness against a twangy variation of the riff from Barrett Strong’s “Money.” She’s drawn to the wrong man, but loyal to a fault, recounting the reasons to break away but lamenting what she’s missing, proclaiming everlasting love and, in the tradition of the Crystals, opening her arms without worry of what others will think. She slings it out with the ease and familiarity of a club singer, working the crowd and drawing listener’s close. Ohlman’s band is similarly road-tested (the bass of Michael Colbath is particularly notable), and her guests include Ian Hunter, Al Anderson, Eric Ambel, Levon Helm, Dion, and Marshall Crenshaw. Her dozen originals are complemented by covers of Van & Titus’ deep soul “Love Makes You Do Stupid Things,” Marvin Gaye and Mary Wells’ “What the Matter With You Baby,” and Link Wray’s “Walkin’ Down the Street Called Love.”

Once upon a time, when rock ‘n’ roll thrived on the radio, this album would have spun off several hit singles. But in today’s fragmented music market, and with little room for raw, gutsy guitar-based music, you’ll more likely hear this in the background of a Fox TV show whose music coordinator is tasked with setting a rebellious mood, or perhaps on a celebrity musician’s weekly satellite radio program. Of course, you can also hear Ohlman in her weekly gig on SNL, and perhaps the show’s producers will be so kind as to offer her a spotlight to sing her original songs – songs that stand tall alongside the covers she curates for the band.
– Hyperbolium.com

JIM'S JUKE JOINT AND SOUL KITCHEN/Jim Hynes

This is certainly a cliché by now but if there were any justice in the music business, this recording and Christine’s poignant tribute to her producer and mate Doc Cavalier, “The Gone of You” both deserve Grammy recognition. Let justice prevail this time. Yes, this record is simply stunning on many levels. [Ohlman’s] voice is just so damn commanding, soulful, and sexy that it becomes the focal point of everything she takes on. There are eleven originals that run the gamut from hard-charging rock and R&B (“Love Make You Do Stupid Things”, “Bring It With You When You Come” and “Cradle Did Rock” among others) to ballads such as the title track and “Like Honey”. Of course, the central theme is “The Gone of You” which appears twice, in full band and in demo versions. Few songs of loss are stated more directly, and honestly.

The Deep End is a treasure; easily one of this year’s best records. Dive in.

-WXLV www.wxlvradio.com

RETURN OF THE BEEHIVE QUEEN
By Paul Rosano November 9, 2009

Christine Ohlman hasn't really been away. In the past five years, she has continued to work with her band Rebel Montez and as a singer for the Saturday Night Live Band, and released the retrospective Re-Hive last year.

But The Deep End, released this month, is her first record of new material since Strip in 2004. It is certainly worth the wait. A collection of bluesy and soul-infused rockers and ballads with emotional, heartfelt lyrics of love and loss, The Deep End is Ohlman's most complete and accomplished work.
The album benefits from an impressive cast of guests who each add something special. Al Anderson plays guitar on two tunes, including the title track, Dion, Ian Hunter and Marshall Crenshaw each sing duet vocals with Chris, and Levon Helm, G.E. Smith Eric "Roscoe" Ambel, Catherine Russell, Paul Ossola and Andy York, guitarist from the John Mellencamp Band who also produces with Chris, are among the many contributors.

Chris sets the scene on the opener, "There Ain't No Cure," a gritty, infectious rocking track that features York on lead guitar and Hunter adding a duet vocal. The title track, one of Ohlman's best compositions, follows with its Latin feel in the verse, interesting melodic twists in the chorus and telling lyrics that speak of loss, something Chris has endured in these past five years losing her mate and producer Doc Cavalier and longtime guitarist and collaborator Eric Fletcher. Anderson provides the lead work on the track in his signature country-blues style.

All the uptempo material is a delight. The grooves are deep and the playing exemplary. Ohlman is in fine form vocally throughout, bringing her unique soulful delivery that ranges from smooth as glass to rough and raspy. Among them -- "Love Make You Do Stupid Things," driven by Ambel's chord-flavored lead style, the country-rock feel of "Love You Right," again with Anderson, "Bring It With You When You Come," which sees Rebel Montez guitarist Cliff Goodwin take a fiery, spitting solo, and "Born To Be Together," on which Goodwin is again featured, this time playing off the melody through what sounds like a Leslie speaker -- are all highlights.

All the tracks but three are written by Ohlman, with one a collaboration with Goodwin, "The Gone Of You." She covers "Cry Baby Cry" with Dion, a stellar duet in a late '50s-early '60s R&B feel complete with a narrative middle section, the Marvin Gaye-Mary Wells Motown tune "What's The Matter With You Baby," on which Crenshaw delivers an inspired vocal interpretation that complements Chris well and lead guitar on the tag, and a duet with Fletcher on Link Wray's "Walkin' Down The Street Called Love," from a live radio show on The Rock from 2005."

"The Cradle Did Rock," "Everybody Got A Heartache" and "What's The Matter" are each tastefully augmented with horns, provided by Chris Anderson (trumpet) and Neal Pawley (trombone) of the Asbury Juke Horns with Mark Rivera on tenor. "Cradle" is Chris' meditation on News Orleans after Katrina and Mardi Gras 2006 that sends an insigtful message via a flaming R&B groove. Everybody lays down a churning, burning feel with G.E. Smith on lap steel and York taking a muted, almost elastic sounding lead drenched in echo.

"Like Honey" is a tender ballad that sets a scene of loneliness and remembrance and "The Gone Of You" travels similar territory with a compelling, repetitive lyric device. There's a second version of the tune at the album's end with a late night, spooky quality on which Ohlman sings to York's instrumentation. "Girl Growing Up" is a gently, flowing country song played acoustically, including Ossola on stand-up bass.
Let's not forget Chris' rhythm section of Michael Colbath on bass and Larry Donahue, drums, who provide a bedrock of deep and soulful grooves on the bulk of the album.
Ohlman recorded The Deep End primarily at Vic Steffens' Horizon Music Group in West Haven, in Nashville and in Woodstock at Helm's studio. The sound quality is excellent and atmosphere consistent throughout despite the disparate locals.

This is a band that must be seen, and the debut of The Deep End at Cafe Nine this week is the perfect repertoire at the perfect setting.

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