wears the trousers magazine

Rose Polenzani with Session Americana
‘Queen Anne’s Lace’

A Google search for Wears The Trousers invariably brings up two or three pages about the fabulous Rose Polenzani, not just because she was a surprise guest of honour in our Pooka interview back in 2005 but also because she loved our review of her album August so much that the opening sentence has graced her PR sheets and such ever since. Which rather begs the question how we didn’t even know she had a new record out until almost a whole month after the fact. Six months if you go from the local rather than national release date. Shame on us. When The River Meets The Sea is actually Rose’s second collaborative album of the year following the beautifully low-key Kings & Queens with former Pooka singer Sharon Lewis on which the original version of ‘Queen Anne’s Lace’ first cropped up. 

The Session Americana version is a different beast altogether. Recorded live off the floor at a studio in Cambridge, Massachusetts back in 2006, it’s a much more vibrant, fleshed out take on the song. As Rose explains, “All those present were free to play any of the studio’s instruments, from a grand piano to a toy piano to a vibraphone, and from over a dozen guitars. The resulting musical arrangements stand as unrepeatable works of chance, friendship and artistry.” Those present included fellow singer-songwriters Jennifer Kimball, Ana Egge and Jordan Caress, as well as the minimum of six musicians that make up Session Americana. When The River Meets The Sea is available through Rose’s website or CDBaby. MP3, tracklist and video after the jump.

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