Linda Bonadies

Nothing but good karma for Linda Bonadies’ sophomore set Karma. One would never guess that this talented singer/songwriter took a 15 year absence from music.  The superb quality of these ten songs would suggest that Bonadies has been writing and singing all her life.  Her maturity lends itself to both her lyrics and vocal performance – but there is nothing matronly about Karma. Bonadies’ panache gives her music an unassuming, friendly vibe, like that of a good role model or mentor.  Her voice is stripped of any girlish qualities but rather exudes confidence and a graceful presence, like Stevie Nicks minus the excessive vibrato (thankfully).

The opening title track is catchy and upbeat with repetitive “da da daas” that cannot help but get stuck in your head.  The straight ahead melody is a simplistic definition of karma itself: what goes around comes around.  David Coe’s electric guitar solo in the bridge continues this accessible trend by only slightly straying from the melody with his embellishments.  Ultimately Karma ends with another tune at almost the same tempo to neatly wrap the album and bring it full circle.  “Lead With Your Heart” continues with the realistic, self-analyzing lyrical advice that brushes up but never slips into the realm of cliché.

Sandwiched in between these two numbers is a fabulous array of adult contemporary gems.  Bonadies conveys that life is not always rosy in “Runaway Train.”  The well-written instrumental opening is accentuated with piano atop quick percussion.  By the second verse a nice string arrangement has entered the mix.  As the song progresses, so does the wall of sound until the coda where the electric guitar plays over the percussion and ends with a stinger.  The most unique track on Karma is “Stir Crazy.”  It strays from the pop realm and hinges on a more hard/Goth rock feel with a heavy amount of echo effect on Bonadies’ voice and a repetitive, singular note melody.  The suspended cymbal and strings add to the dramatic effect and is an excellent departure from all the other songs on the album.

One of the most delightful qualities of Bonadies’ songwriting is her exquisite ability of making the most of her background vocals.  “Take Nothing For Granted” exhibits excellent vocal layering wrapped around Kerry Takahashi’s lovely cello work.  The background vocals in the innocent love song “For A Night” have an endearing Carpenters quality, minus their signature oboe/trumpet solo.  The countermelody in “The Way It Is” is first rate with more notable acoustic guitar work by Coe.  Bonadies’ confident vocals are never grating but can at times have a rough curl around her “r” sounds.  This makes the duet “You” with Tony Burnett not work quite as well.  Both vocal deliveries are great but their voices are not the best compliment for each other.  At times Burnett’s vocal line is above Bonadies’ yet her voice is not quite so low that it makes for the song to have an overall excess of treble sounds.

Nonetheless, the blend on the entire album is great, Bonadies’ songwriting skills are phenomenal and the music loving community is incredibly fortunate to have such a talented artist back in our midst again.

Review by Kelly O’Neil

by Carla Brand Breitner

The ten tracks on singer/songwriter Linda

Bonadies’ new CD “Karma” carry the listener

along on a beat-driven, melodic primer for

getting through life, mostly in control. The

title track is an upbeat anthem with the refrain

“What you do comes

back to you.” And

Ms. Bonadies is off

through songs about

love and living.

“You” is a

rollicking duet to

best friends with

singer Tony Burnett.

The ballads, “The

Way It Is” and

“Take Nothing for

Granted,” celebrate

life lessons taken

and given. And then

Bonadies jumps on

a “Runaway Train”

for a bluesy, driving

reflection on lives that have gone tragically

out-of-control.

David Coe’s excellent, haunting guitar

supports this track. “Stir Crazy” is the flip

side of “Runaway Train.” The singer is stuck

in a “dead end I’ll have to fight.” Bonadies

draws on her inner Kurt Weill and her training

as a composer to dramatically orchestrate

this track. Emotionally “Hold Me” contrasts

couples estranged and reaching for closeness.

The ballad builds from a simple keyboard

accompaniment to a choral call-out supported

by cellos.

“The Flow” looks merrily forward to “time

to let it go.” You might even find yourself

singing along with “it will be all right.” Next

a gentle love song,

“For a Night.” The

final track, “Lead

With Your Heart,”

brings the CD full

circle.

This celebration

of risk and joy

swings along quite

happily as it builds

to a rousing series of

choruses, sending the

listener away happy

and fulfilled.

Linda Bonadies

delivers her songs

with a slightly

raw, emotional

voice backed by her own Carole Kinginspired

keyboard. “Karma” benefits from

her harmonic arrangements for guitar, bass,

drums, percussion and, on various tracks,

cello, horns and background vocals.

Bottom line? “Karma” is a soft rock, adult

pop exuberance.

Linda Bonadies’ music is available on

iTunes and Amazon, as well as www.

lindabonadies.com.

Linda Bonadies – Karma

CD Review By Brooke Mason

Songsalive! member Linda Bonadies’ latest album Karma is her second release following her

2004 debut No Regret. The upbeat title track sucks you in with a joyful message of becoming a self fulfilling prophecy by putting positive energy out into the universe. Also what stands out here, and throughout this album, is Linda’s gift of composition garnered at Bucknell University and Hartt School of Music. Linda’s musical knowledge comes through in her breakdown structures on songs like Karma and The Flow. My favorite track on this album is Stir Crazy with its highly skilled minor chord compositions that fit the lyrical theme.

Vocally I would compare Bonadies more to Carly Simon than Carole King. Linda’s vocal delivery is consistent throughout the album. Lyrically as well, I find the comparisons more akin to the emotional rawness of Carly Simon’s Itsy Bitsy Spider. Linda’s lyrics allude to a lifetime of garnered wisdom on songs like Lead With Your Heart and Take Nothing For Granted. The best representation of Linda’s writing skills on this album is The Flow.  After comparing a fish swimming against a river and a bird flying against the wind as a metaphor for the struggle of humanity and acceptance of the nature of life, Bonadies assures us that, “There’s no need to fight because the flow will take you through your life…”

Runaway Train, Hold Me and The Way It Is definitely have that Been to Canaan style percussion. Male harmonizing is used to great effect on songs like Lead With Your Heart and You, a sassy little jazz number somehow reminiscent of Millie Small.

Website: http://www.lindabonadies.com/

Myspace: www.myspace.com/lindabonadies

Linda Bonadies

Karma

Go For It Records/www.lindabonadies.com

Perfecte 70’s pianopop.

Zes jaar geleden probeerde ik u al warm te maken voor Linda Bonadies’ debuut-cd No Regrets, waarop deze toen al volwassen vrouw liet horen in de muziek eindelijk de uitlaatklep te hebben gevonden voor het gevoel van onvrede dat haar beheerste ondanks dat ze kon bogen op een gelukkig huwelijk, drie fijne kinderen en financiële zekerheid. Nieuw en origineel was Bonadies’ stijl allerminst, maar haar Carol King-achtige pianopopliedjes waren dusdanig sterk en meeslepend dat de plaat toch behoorlijk onweerstaanbaar was. Sindsdien liet ze regelmatig nieuwe liedjes op haar website horen, maar een tweede cd bleef uit, totdat dus recentelijk, voorafgegaan door de bijkans briljante titeltrack, deze Karma verscheen, een album waarop ze hoegenaamd geen nieuw terrein aanboort, maar wel weer tien prachtige staaltjes pianopop ten gehore brengt van een kwaliteit waar Carol King heden ten dage een moord voor zou plegen. Begeleid door een voortreffelijk spelende band, wekt Bonadies de klassieke singer-songwriterpop uit de jaren zeventig weer helemaal tot leven met uitmuntende zelfgeschreven liedjes die wel die bepaalde stijl oproepen, maar toch niet tot specifieke nummers te herleiden zijn. Had Linda Bonadies toen al deze plaat kunnen maken, was ze nu wereldberoemd geweest, daarmee onbewust bewijzend hoe relatief alles eigenlijk is en dat je ook op eigen benen een wereldplaat kunt maken, ook al ben je de vier kruisjes ruim gepasseerd.

**** Eric van Domburg Scipio