The Map

by Dee Carstensen

Overview

Dee Carstensen follows in the footsteps of Shawn Colvin and Suzanne Vega with the polished folk-pop of The Map. While she falls shy of their skills as a songwriter, the singer/harpist is too bright a talent to stand in their shadows, and yet the spotlight of wide commercial acceptance seems to have missed her. For a relative unknown, Carstensen drew a wide circle of talented supporting musicians around her: Mike Mainieri, Tony Levin, Marc Shulman, T-Bone Wolk, Kenny White, and others. The result is an album without one half-formed song; these are all winning arrangements, lush and lovely and longing. As a lyricist, Carstensen is merely OK; as a harpist...well, it's hard to tell in these settings. But as a vocalist, she's terrific, capturing shades of seduction on a cover of Elton John's "Come Down in Time," re-assessing her mistakes in the country-pop setting of "The Boy Was Trouble," stripping down her soul for bare narratives like "Farewell, My Love" and "The Last Time It Mattered," finding the trail of redemption on the upbeat "Saviour." Fans of female folk-pop will likely marvel at The Map, wondering why Carstensen hasn't joined the front ranks of singer/songwriters. Perhaps the Lilith Fair scene had a smaller halo effect than expected, and major labels found themselves back in the familiar habit of trumping out some twinkie-of-the-month with a bared midriff. That's not to say The Map itself isn't formulaic in its own way, but it's such glossy, gauzy, wonderfully polished product that it goes down like a half-pint of premium ice cream: a guilty pleasure perhaps, but also a salve at the end of a hard day. ~ Dave Connolly

Product Details

Release Date:	08/27/1999
Label:	Nyc Music
UPC:	0750507900326

Tracks

1. Be My Man
2. Pandora's Box
3. The Map
4. Hurricane
5. The Boy Was Trouble
6. The Last Time It Mattered
7. Saviour
8. Take a Chance
9. By the Wayside
10. Holding Back an Ocean
11. Come Down in Time
12. Farewell, With Love

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Dee Carstensen   Primary Artist,Harp,Piano,Vocals,Wurlitzer,Vocals (Background)
Mike Mainieri   Guest Artist,Vibraphone
Holly Palmer   Guest Artist,Vocals (Background)
Jonatha Brooke   Guest Artist,Vocals (Background)
Lloyd Landesman   Organ (Hammond)
Dawn Andrews   Cello,Glockenspiel
David Barratt   Drum Loop
Tanya Leah   Guitar (Acoustic),Vocals (Background)
Tony Levin   Bass
Liz Knowles   Violin
Kenny White   Drum Loop,Keyboards,Wurlitzer
Ben Wisch   Shaker,Keyboards,Tambourine
Todd Reynolds   Violin
Jeremy Steig   Flute
Jerry O'Sullivan   Penny Whistle,Uillean Pipes
Hugh McCracken   Harmonica
Dave Richards   Bass (Acoustic)
Zev Katz   Bass
T-Bone Wolk   Bass,Accordion
Everett Bradley   Percussion,Vocals (Background)
Vicki Genfan   Guitar
Shawn Pelton   Drums
Marc Shulman   Tiple,Bazouki,Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric)
Philip Hamilton   Congas,Shaker,Percussion,Vocals (Background)

Technical Credits

Lisa Peardon   Photography
Dawn Andrews   String Arrangements
Michele Hirsch   Production Manager
Tanya Leah   Composer
Ted Jensen   Mastering
Kenny White   Composer
Ben Wisch   Mixing,Engineer,Producer
Bernie Taupin   Composer
Mike Mainieri   Composer,Executive Producer
Everett Bradley   Composer
Elton John   Composer
Dee Carstensen   Composer
Kevin Gaor   Design
Kristen Koerner   Assistant Engineer
Loretta Dee Cartensen   Composer
Matt Anthony   Assistant Engineer
Hollis King   Art Direction