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Gaye Adegbalola sings the blues and celebrates diversity in her new solo CD release
BY JONAS BEALS
Gaye Adegbalola's new album, "Gaye Without Shame," is a formidable exercise in soul-baring blues, and the perfect companion to the upcoming Fredericksburg Pride Festival. Adegbalola, long an outspoken member of the gay/bisexual/lesbian/transgender community, will perform at the Colonial Tavern on Friday night as part of the festival. Adegbalola is one-third of Fredericksburg's legendary blues outfit Saffire--The Uppity Blues Women, and while that band is still going strong, she felt it was time to tackle personal issues with her trademark attitude and humor on a solo album. "I was a keynote speaker at Fredericksburg Pride in 2005, and it just dawned on me that we didn't have any 'protest songs' to fuel our demonstrations like the civil-rights era had," she said. "I wrote a song then, 'I Ain't Ashamed,' that is the closing song on the album. It inspired the rest of them." Heavyweight blues guitarist Bob Margolin produced the CD, working with Adegbalola to capture the attitude and message of the disc while exploring a variety of blues idioms. There are fine examples of Chicago blues, New Orleans blues, doo-wop, R&B, Piedmont blues and just about every other subgenre in the book. Anyone familiar with Saffire, or blues music in general, knows that a healthy dose of sexual innuendo comes with the territory. Songs like "Hungry Woman's Blues" and "Bareback Rider" are thick with cleverly twisted and, often, mature content. Opening track "Queer Blues" sets the tone by bringing an unexpected, upbeat joy to Adegbalola's personal story of struggle and self-discovery. "Whoever said blues is all the same, or blues is a sad music, this album truly refutes that," Adegbalola said. "It's a music of liberation. It's a music of healing. It drives out the toxins." Everyone should deal with pain this well. Despite subject matter that ranges from lust to heartbreak to history, Adegbalola keeps a smile in her voice. "I have faced hardships and gotten through them," she said. "I was excited to take this music to the GBLT community, because I think they will find some healing power in the music." Jonas Beals: 540/368-5036
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