Blues Rock: The Cathy Richardson Band

Buy these two albums by the Cathy Richardson Band just for the CD cases. Snake Camp, with its biblical themes, comes complete with lyric sheets in a small, Bible-like booklet with a ribbon bookmark attached. The Road to Bliss opens up to reveal a highway seen from behind the wheel with the CD being the steering wheel and the liner notes tucked like a road map into the glove compartment.


Don’t judge an album just by its cover, though, because there’s more here. Find the cleverly encased CD, put it in the player, and you’ve got some nice blues-tinged rock songs. Cathy leads a very good band with a couple of different potential directions. Snake Camp is very much more bluesy and is why the Cathy Richardson Band (CRB) wins a spot next to Susan Tedeschi in the Spectrum. Susan Tedeschi continues in the tradition of Janis Joplin. Cathy Richardson draws much from the same bluesy heroine. In fact, Richardson starred as Joplin in the Off-Broadway production of Love, Janis. Bonnie Raitt comparisons aren’t far here either. Snake Camp jams the most on “Live a Lie,” a duet with guitarist Grant Tye.


The Road to Bliss, however, could be in the Folk-influenced American Rock section due to similarities to styling of the Indigo Girls. This isn’t a surprising comparison with Emily Sailers dueting on “Blindsided by Love.” Tracks like “Miracle,” “Take to the Night,” and “Has Been” have that “indigo sound.”

However, The Road to Bliss does open up on some tracks with more of the blues rock that I love in the other album. “This Town” is a great tribute song and slam on Richardson’s hometown of Chicago. “Picture This” builds from a churning chord and leaps into a great chorus.

Interestingly, “Alyson” does a twist on Elvis Costello’s “Allison.” Costello’s Allison has been partying too much. Richardson’s Alyson has been locked up at home and needs some coaxing to come outside.

Cathy Richardson is known in some press as a lesbian singer, a title she’d rather separate by a comma (“lesbian, singer”). I think that is only fair. She’s a singer who happens to be a lesbian.

Now to some of my Christian readers, it may surprise you to find that a pastor in a socially-conservative denomination is a fan of a musician who is a lesbian. However, I’m also a fan of musicians who are alcoholics, illegal drug users, womanizers, convicted criminals, and members of the Church of Satan. If I was going to throw out all of the sinner-musicians from my CD collection, well, of course, it’d be very small. The shelves would be bare. In fact, I shouldn't even listen to the songs in my head, because I'm a sinner too!

With the current debate in this country and the Church about homosexuality and same-sex marriage, could I be giving the wrong impression by talking up Cathy Richardson as a great singer? I could be if I thought that we’re called as Christians to stand apart from all sinners and cast stones.

However, Jesus hung out with prostitutes, tax collectors, and other sinners. Jesus ate and prayed and talked to those who were clearly sinning and going against His commands. Yet, Jesus welcomed them to be in His company, welcomed them into God’s love. I am challenging myself to look for those ways to reach out with compassion, love, and forgiveness to all people, because Jesus reached out to me with that compassion, love, and forgiveness. I am a sinner that doesn't deserve to be hanging out with the divine Son of God.

Do I think homosexuality goes against what God wants for us? Yes. Do I think God loves those who are homosexual? Yes. If I condemned homosexuals, supported laws that go against homosexuals, made life difficult for homosexuals, then I better also get the Congress to write an amendment condemning adultery. Adultery is also sin; it destroys also family. You could think of many sins that we do not make laws against but are nonetheless damaging for our lives.

So what is our role as Christians when it comes to homosexuals? The same role as with prostitutes, tax collectors, and other sinners, we are to reach out in love as our Savior, Jesus, did. We do not shun; we do not condemn. We are aware of sin, but we come alongside each person, show them the love of God, tell them about the gift of eternal life, and struggle with our sinfulness right along with them.

Cathy, sorry for going on so long about an issue, rather than just talking about your music. I love the passion in your voice, and I think you’ve done exactly what I’ve needed to do: to think about how my faith in Jesus informs how I act towards people. Thank you for that!

Cathy has a lot of soul-searching, spiritual themes in her albums, and one of her songs will have to appear on MonDevotions in the future.

Thanks to the Cathy Richardson Band and to Merchandise Betty for their help in providing review copies.