For her latest single with Billy Blue Records, bluegrass songbird Caroline Owens has chosen Evangeline, a new song she wrote with Lacey Green.
The song tackles the delicate issue of spousal abuse, and the women who come to believe that it’s somehow their fault, or their responsibility to control it through their own behavior. In form, it carries a message from one abuse victim to the next woman who has begun a relationship with the abuser.
Owens says that the lyrics deal with the subject head on.
“Evangeline carries a weight many women know all too well, and there’s no hiding from that when you step into the song. This is for the ones who learned to hide the bruises, and for those still finding the courage to leave.”
It forms a real contrast with Caroline’s previous release, Telluride, a driving, fun-time grasser, which went to the top of our Bluegrass Today Weekly Airplay chart. This one is delivered at a more sedate tempo, as the content of the message requires.
Owens sings the lead, with studio support from Cody Kilby on guitar, Andy Leftwich on fiddle, Matt Menefee on banjo, Darin Aldridge on mandolin, Jeff Partin on reso-guitar, and Mike Bub on bass. Suzanne Cox adds harmony vocals.
Have a listen. It is likely to have an emotional impact.
Evangeline is available now from popular download and streaming services online, and to radio programmers via AirPlay Direct.
