Shawn Colvin - The Starlighter (2018)

When Shawn Colvin was an eight-year-old girl, her parents presented her with Lullabies and Night Songs, a collection of children's music that joined famed composer Alec Wilder's arrangements with the fantastical artwork of author/illustrator Maurice Sendak. The budding young musician found inspiration in the book and in 1998, Colvin, then eight months pregnant with her daughter and on the cusp of becoming a parent herself, returned to its pages to record the seasonal album, Holiday Songs and Lullabies, which featured her re-workings of several of Wilder and Sendak's selections.

Now, 19 years later, she has revisited Lullabies and Night Songs for her newest release, The Starlighter. The Starlighter finds the Grammy-winning singer, songwriter and guitarist once again reaching back to her childhood inspiration in service of crafting an elegant and graceful musical offering- one that resonates with the warmth and tenderness of poignant familial experience and remembrance. Its 14 songs are a mix of traditional numbers and children's standards, all of them culled from the pages of Wilder and Sendak's transformative book.

The selections that Colvin chose for The Starlighter run the gamut from traditional fare like "Hush Little Baby" and "Raisins and Almonds" to "Minnie and Winnie" with words by 19th century poet Alfred, Lord Tennyson, and "Cradle Song," with lyrics by celebrated English poet William Blake. Colvin and producer Doug Petty remain true to Wilder's original arrangements while also embellishing them with gentle orchestration, horns, accordion, piano and Colvin's signature acoustic guitar. The result is an album that captures the magic and mystery of children's lullabies while also offering a moving and timeless musical experience.