Bang Bang

Amazon.com Something of a latecomer to MCA's late-'80s/early-'90s stable of left-field country artists spearheaded by Lyle Lovett and Nanci Griffith, Virginian Kelly Willis ultimately floundered there despite cutting three critically hailed releases for the company. Bang Bang, the middle title in the MCA trilogy, is an ever-appealing 10-song outing that makes Willis's lack of commercial success all the more mystifying. Posited midway between the Nashville outskirts territory of Lovett, Steve Earle, and the other '80s insurgents and the mid-'90s y'alternative school (Willis mixes easily with both camps), Bang Bang shows off the singer's powerful pipes and nose for excellent songs: tunes by Earle, Australian folk-rocker Paul Kelly, Jim Lauderdale, and Joe Ely are among the standout selections here. Bang Bang reflected where one vital stream of country music headed in the '90s; too bad more fans didn't catch the boat. --Steven Stolder Product Description Bang Bang by Kelly Willis