Danni Leigh (Audium)
Like the best female country singers—Cline, Wynette, Lynn—Leigh, 31, has always sounded mature beyond her years. This might not boost her stock as a video babe, but it does make for superlative, perceptive singing, allowing her to perform tunes such as "House of Pain" without sounding presumptuous. This, her third album, contains 10 well-written, intelligent songs, such as "Somebody Oughta Do Something About That Girl." Leigh, a former record store clerk, grew up in Strasburg, Va., listening to Patsy Cline and Kitty Wells, and, like them, she approaches the melodies and lyrics directly, with an unfussy style complemented by straightforward production. Leigh has seen her career suffer from having two labels, Decca and Monument, fail her; she deserves better.
Bottom Line: A nearly buried Nashville treasure
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