Claudia Robbens - Who You Want To Be (2017)

If you’re a fan of tender ballads, catchy swing, rollicking shuffles with a classic bluesy feel then Claudia Robbens has just made the album for you. Her band, with guitarist Kim Wijsbeek, pianist Ruud de Grood and bassist Dick Hoppe, rotate through a cast of some of the best sidemen The Netherlands have to offer (Joost van Es (fiddle), Gregor Hamilton en Ferry Lagendijk (keys), Jan van Bijnen (pedal steel), Arie Verhaar (drums) and BJ Baartmans (slide) deliver an album of truly soulful original songs. ‘Who you want to be’ is a record to be taken seriously – one full of delightful treats. Claudia’s voice can be both vulnerable and raw like in the number ‘Old Habits’ or smooth enough to transport you over oceans far and wide like the tune ‘Orange County’. Some songs like ‘Cherokee’ and ‘Into You’ make you feel the pain of lost love while in ‘Hope’ you can believe again that all is possible. The song ‘So far away from home’ is already available and in this ode to the earth the pure flute lines from flautist Isaac Muller tug on your heart strings. In short the album is a magical ride where the songs, the musicians and producer Andre van den Bunt combine to paint lush pictures with burning guitar licks, smoking Hammond phrases and good old county fiddling and of course – the voice of Claudia Robbens.
Subtle, understated and daring this debut album from Claudia Robbens was a long time coming – but now ‘Who you want to be’ proves to be worth the wait.