*sigh*

I leave the room for five minutes, and exactly what I feared comes to pass...

What I was really hoping to launch a discussion of, rather than another tiresome "She's the greatest/She sucks/She's not worthy to lick Nic Jones' boots" conversation, was a discussion specifically of this latest CD and its relative merits/disappointments. If anyone has actually listened to it, I'm curious to see if you shared my impressions (first post) or how you might agree or disagree. You can PM me if you don't want to lay your neck on the chopping block. :)

I should also say that I totally respect all the opinions posted here, whether or not I agree, with the possible exception of the "Anyone who thinks she's as good as Nic Jones..." To me it's not an either/or proposition. I don't understand why the fact that Nic Jones is apparently the greatest means that anyone who isn't *exactly like him* is therefore beneath contempt. She very well may not be the best performer out there, but at its best her music moves me (and a heck of a lot of other people) in a profound way.
Yes, Kate has achieved a great deal of fame and fortune, on her own merits. Not everyone is wild about her, but she's earned everything she's ever gained and I have enormous respect for her.

I once had a friend who hated musical theatre, which happened to be my major. He once asked me, with very real puzzlement, "Why would you waste your time with musical theatre when you could be reading James Joyce instead?" I wish I could say I had a snappy comeback, but I was so flummoxed by the yawning gulf between our worldviews that I could only gape at him like a fish.

"Must it all be either less or more,
Either plain or grand?
Is it always "or"?
Is it never "and"?" --Stephen Sondheim

Molly

P.S. Snuffy...this'll keep you awake at night. Did you know that "Britney Spears" is an anagram of "Presbyterians"?