Hey all... here is a recent "very positive" review, i am told, of my album 'Miracle Girl'. published by www.Rootstime.be (BELGIUM - targeting the rootsmusic-lovers in Belgium & the Netherlands). written by Valere Sampermans.

if any of you out there speak Dutch and would like to translate to English for me, let me know...

~ by Valere Sampermans for www.Rootstime.be  - "Miracle Girl" by Beth Wimmer:

Beth Wimmer is een zangeres die haar roots heeft in het Amerikaanse New England maar nadien sinds meerdere jaren in Los Angeles woonde van waaruit ze gestaag aan haar muzikale carrière werkte. Ze is langzaamaan populair geworden in Europese landen als Zwitserland - waar ze momenteel ook woont - en in Italië en Duitsland waar ze steevast enkele dagen doorbrengt tijdens haar Europese tournees. Volgende keer zou ze zeker België en Nederland aan haar reisschema moeten toevoegen want deze muziek kent ook in onze contreien een trouwe aanhang.

Haar singer-songwritercapaciteiten etaleert ze uitgebreid in de tien tracks die werden weerhouden voor haar nieuwe album “Miracle Girl” dat ze samen met David Raven heeft geproduceerd. Als producer werkte Raven in het recente verleden ook al samen met o.a. Norah Jones en Nancy Sinatra.

De liedjes over hoop, humor, liefde en menselijke warmte vormen een coherent samenhangend geheel en werden op melodieuze muziek gezet waarbij de invloeden uit het country- en folkgenre duidelijk herkenbaar aanwezig zijn.

Qua stemgeluid doet Beth Wimmer soms denken aan Lucinda Williams en in de song “Ten-Four” roept ze bij ons zelfs even het beeld op van Chrissie Hynde van ‘The Pretenders’. Het uptempo countryrocknummer “Lover From Last Summer” gaat er bij ons in als zoete broodjes maar dat geldt evenzo voor de meer klassieke tearjerkers als “Miracle Girl”, “I Couldn’t Do It”, “O My Brother” of “Only Love Can Break Your Heart”, een song van Neil Young en de enige cover op deze mooie cd.

Dat Beth Wimmer ook over een behoorlijk grote portie soul beschikt valt dan weer te beluisteren in “Dreams Bring Me Down” en “Self-righteous Son Of A Bitch”, een onvervalste rock’n’roller die als afsluiter van dit album wordt geserveerd. Die swingende stijl was overigens nog veel sterker aanwezig op haar vorige plaat “Live Within Live Without” uit 2003.

Beth Wimmer blijkt dus een dame te zijn die van meerdere markten thuis is en daarmee kom je dezer dagen heel ver op de podia in het Europese muzikale landschap.

~by Valere Sampermans

 *** “Beth Wimmer is a lady with soul in her voice and love in her heart on the album ‘Miracle Girl’, reminiscent of Lucinda Williams or Chrissie Hynde. She demonstrates that she can deal with different music styles which will bring her on several stages in Europe and in home country America”
– www.rootstime.be

hello again my dears...

i know you just heard from me, but more has happened that i wanted to share!

i'm happy to announce that Music from my Miracle Girl CD and my commentary on my music and songwriting are featured on the "Next Big Thing" International Music Podcast, by Martin Smit in Germany, as of yesterday!

i'm so delighted and honored to be included in the 09/09/09 Edition of the "Next Big Thing" Podcast! Martin puts together an inspiring collection of artists, along with their intimate comments on their music - what a service! :) i highly recommend streaming the podcast while you're at your computer or in your office -- all the music from this month's episode is really wonderful!! i hope you will listen - i am thrilled with it.

from Martin Smit, of "Next Big Thing", Germany: Greetings all, the new NBT podcast 9th Sept 09 is up featuring great music from Melody Klyman, HuDost, Doug Folkins, Beth Wimmer, and more... Click on
http://nextbigthing.libsyn.org/  or  http://nextbigthing.libsyn.com

THEN... Easy Instructions... Right click on the "Pod" icon next to the title "Mad Butterflies and Gentle Trespassers" to "Save Link as... MP3"  OR simply click on the "play" arrow on the little grey & white radio console display, just to the right of the title, to listen right away.

Martin of "Next Big Thing" has also written a review of Miracle Girl and here is the link to enjoy his review... Miracle Girl, Beth Wimmer - CD Review

i find Martin's writing both poetic and provoking. he made me more intrigued with my own songs - ha!  :-)  i thank NBT hills and heaps for their kindly attention to my music...

with so much gratitude...
Peace & Harmony,
beth

**New!: Publicity, Europe - Peter Holmstedt, Hemifran

**TO ORDER MY CDs... CD Baby ~ Beth Wimmer

just back this week from a bellissimo time in Italy last weekend... my first gig with full band here in Europe was a concert, Friday night, in a small sweet village called Verceia. Verceia is about an hour's drive south of the Swiss border, nestled at the foot of the Italian alps. my new band-mates, Massimo Gini on guitar and bass, Damiano della Torre on guitar and bass (they take turns), and Pablo Leoni on drums, and i were set up on a custom built wooden stage at lake's edge, under the night sky, bright full moon. train tracks on one side of us, and lake and late-evening, summer-sun-soaked mountains on the other. it was a magical evening!

about 300 people in the village came out and listened, swayed, danced along. i was in heaven. played 10 of my songs and 7 or so sweet cover tunes... it was SO great to play with a band again! and i LOVE playing with Italian musicians! haha - food is SO important to them. it's essential to have a good meal together before every show. ;) and wine flowing...

met a bunch of the people after the show, all excitedly speaking italian at me. needed a translator. :) it was awesome. i had such a great time with these lovely musicians that i spontaneously stayed another 24 hours! the next day, enjoyed a robust meal complete with guitars being strummed and songs sung at the lunch table... home-made mushroom polenta from Massimo's aunt Lidia... then an afternoon garden jam session between the apple and pear trees. and in the evening i attended their next concert.

saturday night my guys backed the gentle giant, wonderful Italian singer~guitar player Silver Pozzoli. a long-white-haired, kind-faced, big-voiced singer, well known in italy from so much great music he'd made in the 80s... they put on a tight and energetic show, though the wind nearly blew them all off the open-air stage on the football field! i took pictures and helped a bit - as much as Italian gentlemen musicians would let me help. it was a special experience.

another gig to come, with the band, on September 18th in Gordona, Italy - then another to follow on October 1st - i don't know where exactly. ;) but i'm grateful.

this friday, September 11th, i am playing a solo, 3 hour evening at a hotel in Grindelwald, Switzerland. i've never been to this region, so it will be a new experience... a good gig that comes with breakfast the next morning, i love it. chocolate croissant, bitte und danke schoen... :)

and friday night i shall play my version of Bruce Springsteen's "Empty Sky" - a strong and sadly honest song of loss inflicted by the attacks on the US on September 11, 2001. eight years ago...

Love and harmony...
~beth

**New!: Publicity, Europe - Peter Holmstedt, Hemifran

**TO ORDER MY CDs... CD Baby ~ Beth Wimmer

i learned recently that every star has its own sound, its own personal song. the star sings it clearest, strongest song when it's at its brightest... then the star sings a lower tone when it is waning. one day when the sun is finished, it will be a white dwarf. but even a white dwarf has a song.

MusicalDiscoveries.com has reviewed in the past year both my latest CD, "Miracle Girl", and my "Live Within Live Without" CD, and they've said some real nice things. i want to thank them for their in depth look at all the songs, and for their time!

on their site, they've published both reviews and posted my photos - though they were encouraging me to let them post the nude, self-portrait from the inside cover of "Miracle Girl", reminding me that i would sell more CDs that way. i say let the music stand for itself, the naked is on the inside because that's where i like the naked to be. :) haha.

thanks to Audrey Elliot, and to Russel Elliot of MusicalDiscoveries.com!

and thank you everybody for reading...

so here are both CD reviews, Miracle Girl first...and since i don't think i ever posted the Live Within...CD review, it's below for good measure.

love loves soul,
xo ~ beth

FOR THE FULL Review of 'Miracle Girl', use this link:
Miracle Girl by Beth Wimmer, CD Review

SNIPPET of 'Miracle Girl' CD review by www.MusicalDiscoveries.com...
(25 May 2009) Miracle Girl picks up where Live Within Live Without left off. Again, Beth treats listeners to her unique blend of Americana and folk with a touch of rock - and a lovely cover of Neil Young's "Only Love Can Break Your Heart."

Her songs are infused with lush vocals and guitar laiden accompaniment. Her luxuriant voice mesmerizes the listener, wanting more and more. She tugs at the heart strings with her songs of humanness, hope...This tapestry of human emotions is beautifully woven and quite captivating.


FOR THE FULL Review (if you can believe...there IS more:) of 'Live Within Live Without', use this link:
Live Within Live Without by Beth Wimmer, CD Review

SNIPPET of 'Live Within Live Without' CD review by www.MusicalDiscoveries.com...
(15 November 2008)...she opens this emotive album with "Situations." Beth's alluring vocals are down-to-earth and filled with wonderful fervor. The marvelous violin by Mark Indictor complements the flowing melody, in addition to the hammond B3, lending a sumptuous feel to this track. "Move On" has a rockier edge in this song about self-realization. Beth shows her expertise in telling her story with a sensivity and humanness. The title track, "Live Within Live Without," has a great psychedelic feel with its folk/rock roots.

"With Our Eyes Closed" has a catchy percussive melody that has great hooks. There is a warmth that envelops her vocals shown throughout this entire set of songs. She can handle many genres, and has a special affinity to her gorgeous country-infused folk as in "Hey Babe." There is an honest simplicity that she delivers with confidence. She continues in a similar vein in "Lose My Way," permeating this track with slide guitar and her beautiful vocals.

"Saturated" heightens the senses. Beth's soulful tones and folk/rock sound are explosive here. She continues to show great sensitivity in "Calling All Hearts" and "Hard." The latter song has marvelous mandolin, mandola and violin accompaniment that pervades this piece. Combined with her clarity of tone, this song is a true winner. You can definitely "feel your sensations run high from within."

Her soulful rendition of "The Wheel" carries a straight-to-the-point feel. Country sounding "Holdin' Out" speaks of hopes and dreams of a love relationship. Beth exposes a vulnerability and intimacy of feelings that tugs at the heart. She concludes with the flowing "Every Time." This song of human setbacks and hope is spirited and beautifully presented.

Beth Wimmer certainly deserves top kudos for this lush and savvy album. Live Within Live Without has a free spirited feel, exploring love lost and love found. She has definitely found a connection with her gorgeous vocals and sweeping melodies. She exudes a richness as a vocalist, songwriter and guitarist that leaves the listener wanting more and more. She has a new release entitled Miracle Girl that has also been well received. Her music comes from the heart and heightens the senses. --Audrey Elliot in New York for MusicalDiscoveries.com

TO ORDER MY CDs...click here:
Beth Wimmer CDs on CDBaby.com
thank you! ~beth

since i was a teenager i have loved the song Hotel California. it's just a cool song, no matter how you slice it...

last thursday night at my gig in Stueblibar (St. Moritz, Switzerland) was THE night, if any, that i should have had an entertainer's video head-cam mounted and running!

it seemed my audience was provided by Central Casting of Hollywood. i had the crowd's immediate attention at first strum, even through the din. their personal conversation and their antics during my playing were quiet and polite - and after every song i played, the folks of all ages were smiling, applauding enthusiastically and nodding, awaiting the next song. they didn't even smoke too much!

i write this because i have learned that the bar-gig scene here can be unforgiving. it's mostly fun, yes, it's good experience, yes -- but there are nights where i can go all night and feel like i've just played my heart out to a room full of zombies...

but thursday night - a model audience. then in walk the F.C. Basel (Swiss, of course) Football team. Tall and handsome, rugged... and, even drunk, also polite! they added a secure and appropriate dose of testosterone to the scene.

the evening was a pleasant twilight zone... how lucky can a female bar musician get?

i was delighted that i actually knew and could play (to the best of my ability) nearly every song requested by the appreciative and well-behaved audience. as the night went on, the bar guests became louder and sloshier, but still, so damn nice! the head Football hunk tossed a 50- franc-bill into my tip jar!

next request, from table 2: Hotel California by the Eagles. sure, no problem. the room further transformed as i sang the first line, "on a dark desert highway..."

the crowd ROARED with delight!! women screamed their approval in my direction, then  their gratitude into each other's faces - one dropped to her knees as if a long-awaited medicine was just delivered to her dying village! the men hugged and held on to each other, single fists in the air like they'd just won the war! individual patrons threw their hands up to the Gods as if some deeply personal prayer had been at long last answered. and even the heavy-metal-loner dude, with spikes on the shoulders of his jean-jacket, pulled the ponytail out of his long hiar and banged devotedly away to the beat!

i did not have to sing the song. they sang it for themselves, and to the heavens!

alcohol inspired? yes, probably... but no matter how you slice it, Hotel California is just a cool song.

:)

i reveled in my experience of playing music last weekend in a small Swiss town in Spring...

saturday afternoon, sauntering through a sunny valley village, riderless horses pass by.

white and violet lilacs present their sweet treasure at every garden corner, and wildly offer themselves along the railway. i cross the tracks, fresh pulled lilacs, and step across a shadowy cobblestone alley. come into a sun soaked backyard and the inviting aroma of baked potato for saturday's supper.

sun goes down late in the evening sky, floats like a farm-fresh, orange egg-yolk over the train station.

and at the top of the lazy hill i tune up my guitar in the square and cozy Chaplin's Pub. no stage for me, and my backdrop is the giant-framed, handsome face of James Dean, under which he reminds us: "Dream as if you'll live forever, live as if you'll die today."

the night sky darkening, i begin to strum and sing for the flashing eyes and lively smiles on the faces of the carefree folks, satiated with saturday, in Herisau.

a couple months ago i posted a blog called "old songs new memories" (something like that)... i was remarking how an old song that used to mean a certain time, place, smell, person to me, was now bringing in new feelings and beautiful new memories. cool.

but then i just experienced the power of the memory again -- this time in the strength of the painbody memories...

i was listening to my Itunes, on shuffle, and Anne McCue's song "Hellfire Raiser" came on... and it got me in the gut. i absolutley love that song, but...

i suddenly found myself longing for pain... longing for living in santa monica again, driving around the town with all the windows down, music loud - singing "Hellfire Raiser" at the top of my voice... and wondering, wishing and worrying at the bottom of my heart. i actually missed the wishing and worrying! my, how dramatic, tragic and interesting it was when my day to day was the mind-chatter, thinking, "will the married man call tonight" or "will my out of town lover come this weekend, or should i call my boy-toy in the valley...?"

who will be with me? with whom should i be? what am i doing?

i would just go home, make a salad for myself, then work on some songwriting... but my mind would just keep working, trying to figure it all out. what's best for me vs. what do i want right now.

i became aware, as "Hellfire Raiser" played on, how much has changed, but how parts of me have stayed the same... i became worried about myself that i was longing for pain again... then i thought that perhaps this was normal. :) don't worry, just...let it come and let it go...

next song that came through the speakers was "Here Comes the Sun" (perhaps needless to say, by the Beatles.) and you know... i listened, i listened...and i couldn't hear or feel anything old. only the moment. all felt right again. i looked for my friend, Pain, but he was gone. i breathed deeply and reached high with my hands for the sun.

appreciative of this day... grateful for the experiences, accepting of the painbodies. most grateful for the path i am on...

"but tomorrow may rain so, i'll follow the sun..." (lennon/mccartney)

pascal and i were talking about things we've won... i thought i was not the lucky type, but i realize how lucky i am, really. all my life...

age 8: a giant jar of jellybeans when i guessed the right amount inside! i ate them all.

age 10: a giant, aqua-colored stuffed lion at knotts berry farm. i tossed a wooden ring onto a stretched bottle-neck. and i was in bandages at the time, after my car accident. i brought that lion on the airplane with me, back home to massachusetts from california. a proud moment.

also age 10: a free pizza at "jimmy's famous pizza and miniature golf" in north andover, mass. get a hole in one on the last hole, and you get a free pizza! i did.

10 years old was a lucky, and unlucky, year for me.

age 12: a contest at school where you hang from a bar, elbows bent, hands facing forward, gripping the bar, chin above the bar. i hung there longer than any other student in the school. i won stiff hands, achey shoulders, and a lot of respect from the boys and girls for that one.

age 17: i won a ricoh photography contest that i entered via my high school - won a 35mm ricoh camera -- for my high school. they were nice enough to let me use it my senior year.

age 18: i won the annual poetry reading contest in my high school - i read a poem about cancer, written by my mom's friend, kate drury. i won a book of poetry by john greenleaf whittier.

age 25: a braided-garlic decoration from a kitchen store that had newly opened in burbank. oh joy, oh rapture! nearly forgot about that victorious moment.

age 27: second place in a talent show, in pasadena, california. i sang bonnie raitt's 'love letter' and came in second over an all too large array of dancers, singers, comics, breakdancers... i was the only white girl in the house. i won a gift certificate for a restaurant.

age 32: a $25 gift certificate from trader joe's, for trader joe's. i ran through the store yelling "i won, i won!" - boobs bouncing, like a crazy lady on the price is right! running and yelling in the store was more exhilirating than actually winning the 25 bucks.

three years ago: lucinda williams tickets, in a radio call-in contest. i took dierdre with me cause we can't get enough of lucinda. a joyous occasion!

two years ago: first place on american idol underground (an online song contest) for my song 'self righteous son of a bitch'. i merely won fame and fortune for that. nothing else.

pascal looked at me and told me he won a pair of sweet, gold earrings for the girl he had a crush on when he was 10, at a school carnival.

then he told me his biggest win ever, was when he won my love.

oh my heart! he is beautifully poetic, deeply soul-centered.

ich bin eine glückliche frau!

what have you won?

Love, and good luck,
beth

Our sense of smell is one of our most sensitive and reliable senses for bringing back strong memories... remember dad's aftershave, your grandmother's tomato sauce, or maybe the smell of cigarette smoke mixed with your mom's perfume...

but i think the next, strongest memory-making sense is our sense of music. a song that you haven't heard in an incredibly long time can bring you right back to where you were when something important happened - right back to where you were standing, what was around you, who you were looking at - and the moments unfolding during that song left vivid, beautiful imprints, or sometimes scars, on your heart or in your mind that are relived when 'that song' comes on the radio...

and that's really fascinating and wonderful. even though those song-memories can tear you apart, stop you in your tracks and make you cry all over again... there's a purpose for everything.

but yesterday i felt something new, which is always a treat. these days and nights for me are so fresh, so bright and unusual, that an old song now brings something completely new. i've made such big changes in my life, my location, my heart, my thinking... that yesterday when Rolling Stones "Moonlight Mile" surprised me, crooning sublimely through my stereo while i baked a pumpkin pie, my heart swelled up into my throat, and new tears spilled forth. and it wasn't the old sadness, the old melancholy scene. the song was simply bringing me back to last week, and "Moonlight Mile" became the new soundtrack to our silent, moonlit, frozen-serene, gloved-in-mittened-hand walk through the snow, in the middle of the night.

my cup runneth over with brand new memories, new imprints of joy, and fullness of heart. and i am so grateful for fresh, new memories to complete and complement the story of the old scenes, that still live on in my mind.