Ina May Wool - Moon Over 97th Street (1999)

New York City-based songwriter Ina Mae Wool is certainly one of Gotham's most exciting upstarts. Possessing a striking voice, incisive lyrics, and a wonderful gift for melody that seems to elude many of today's singer-songwriters, Ina Mae leaps ahead of the pack with her debut album. MOON is filled with rootsy folk-pop that retains its decidedly homespun feel, although Wool has her feet firmly planted in the present day. From the jaunty "Hot Wired and Hungry" to the forbidding swirls of "The Devil You Don't," and the ambitious wish list of the gorgeous title track, Wool unequivocally proves that she is capable of giving the Lilith Fair women more than a run for their money.