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Lili Añel
Dream Again (Wall I) 9/10
A tremendous talent who honed her chops alongside Greenwich Village folk stalwarts Suzanne Vega and Shawn Colvin, Lili Añel returns with her third and best recording after a five-year hiatus. Possessing a singular, smoky-sounding vocal style that falls somewhere between Joan Armatrading (Añel covers Armatrading’s "Down to Zero" here) and Nina Simone (especially on "Life or Death"), Añel’s recent move to Philly yielded a collaboration with fretless-bass player Cooke Harvey, who helped co-helm an extraordinary album that might be just a bit bass-heavy—Añel’s voice and phrasing are too extraordinary to be given anything less than centerstage. Her highly personalized lyricism shows added depth from past recordings, whether it’s in the samba-like "Over You" or the snappy-edged light funk of "Temporary Amnesia." Elsewhere, Añel incorporates songs about her faith (the hypnotic "Life or Death" and gorgeous hit-written-all-over-it "If God Had a Wallet") that never come off preachy, with the latter existing on the same plane as Joan Osborne’s "One of Us." Dream is a fabulous, rock-solid gift of exquisitely penned and sung songs. This deserves to be a commercial hit. —Skitch Mulligan

I completed my third CD DREAM AGAIN in early 2007. My co-producer was bassist, COOKE HARVEY who I have been fortunate to have been working with this past year and who has aided me in taking my music to a level I've always wanted. I have two previous CDs to my credit, "Laughed Last" (Palmetto Records) and "Hi-Octane Coffee". Both are still available for sale at www.lilianel.org.audio08. I was born and raised in New York City, Spanish Harlem, to be exact. Around my 4th birthday, my family moved to the South Bronx. I am lucky to have grown up during a time when radio was a lot more open; you'd hear The Beatles, Bob Dylan, James Brown Tommy James and the Shondells, Judy Collins, Nat King Cole and The Strawberry Alarm Clock all in one sitting.

I studied music at City College of the City University of New York's Leonard Davis Center for the Performing Arts. While I did not graduate, I was lucky enough to have studied voice under the guidance of mezzo-soprano JANET STEELE as well as having studied with legendary jazz vocalist SHEILA JORDAN. I studied guitar and harmony at Guitar Study Center; this was an incredible schooling for me, studying with various New York City session musicians. School won't give you "talent" but it will aid you in growing as a musician on a practical and technical end; the rest of the "schooling" comes from going out there and just doing it.

I am happily a resident of Philadelphia, PA and I perform in and around the Philadelphia, New Jersey, Delaware and New York vicinity. I’ve met some fine musicians and made a friend or two since my arrival in Philly. I’ve sung with Patricks Head quite a bit at gigs and on two of their recordings Poor Man’s Shuffle and Bob Dylan’s One More Cup of Coffee. My liaison with Patricks Head has blossomed not only to a shared love of music, but a wonderful friendship as well.