ALBUM REVIEW: On ‘Prayin’ for Sunshine,’ Suzy Bogguss Shines Light on Her Songwriting

On her previous two albums, Suzy Bogguss wrapped her warm, crystalline, and sometimes hard-edged vocals around familiar American folk and pop songs ( 2011’s American Folk Songbook) and the songs of Merle Haggard (2014’s Lucky). On her new album, Prayin’ for Sunshine, she wrote and produced the entire album, co-writing songs with her husband and co-producer Doug Crider, Matraca Berg, Gretchen Peters, Pat Bergeson, and Bill Lloyd. Prayin’ for Sunshine moves from supplication to celebration, reveling in the joys of friends, family, community, her fans, and storytelling.

The album opens with the swampy Mississippi Hill Country blues growler “It All Falls Down to the River.” Slithering slide guitar snakes below Bogguss’ vocals as she vividly depicts the transience of our lives even in the face of our desire to see the enduring hope in the facades we build to hide the crumbling foundations. The ethereal harmonies of the McCrary Sisters recount events such as Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination and the breaking of the levees in Hurricane Katrina, evoking the deep sorrow emanating from dashed hopes.

Gently cascading guitars and Bogguss’ aching vocals convey the longing to stay one more day in the city she just played in “Sunday in Birmingham.” The shuffling, jazzy “Paint the Town Blue” rings with love for a small town, while the haunting ballad “Camille” — co-written with Berg and Peters — captures the ache and loneliness of a prostitute. The minor chord verses illumine the ways society casts off women such as Camille as unthinking and unfeeling, but the brighter chorus reveals a woman who thinks and feels deeply as she tries to make sense of her life.

The rollicking “GPS” humorously celebrates the freedom of the road; as long as the GPS is turned on, the singer can get there from here. The swinging jazzer “A Woman Who Cooks,” co-written with Lloyd, is a tongue-in-cheek take on a woman musician who cooks in the kitchen as well as onstage, in the studio, and other places. The album closes with the spaciously unfurling love song “Can You Still See Me Like That?”, a meditation on the chapters of a life-long journey of love.

Prayin’ for Sunshine showcases Bogguss’ lyrical and musical ingenuity, her nod-and-a-wink humor, and her deep love for her community of friends and fans. And the album reminds us again just how radiant and transportive Bogguss’ vocals are.

Suzy Bogguss’ Prayin’ for Sunshine is out Nov. 3 on Loyal Dutchess Records.