The Lynns (Warner, 1998)

There certainly is something to be said for family harmonies. The Lynns fill the bill quite capably in that area, and that is the strength of their debut. On song after song, they meld their voices together ("Woman to Woman").

What's lacking is meaty songs and a musical identity. The disc starts off promisingly enough with "Crazy World of Love," a traditional song with lots of pedal steel and fiddle from Larry Franklin. But while the remaining nine songs are certainly not bad, they also don't pack a musical wallop. It was as if producer Don Cook wanted to give a trad feel on the opener to remind listeners of the duo's roots (they are Loretta's daughters), before quickly changing gears. The result is a bit too uptempo of a sound with too much drums ("Oh My Goodness" where the music almost overpowers the singing).

The vocals are what distinguishes the Lynns. Now, if they only could have a direction to match.