Kerri Arista CD Review

Artist – Kerri Arista
Title – Walk Beside Me
Label – Self produced – Kerri Arista
Catalogue Number – Not listed at this time
Star Rating – 4 stars

Sometimes quite by accident you come across an album that just blows you away Kerri Arista’s latest offering Walk Beside Me does just that. It is a brilliant album in every sense of the word. The album combines Kerri’s superb writing talents with tender ballads that tug at the heartstrings plus a few livelier numbers to shake things up every once in a while. This is Kerri’s third CD and was produced by Kerri herself. Classed as a blend of pop, country and folk this is an album that should appeal to a variety of music fans.

The album kicks off with the title track – Walk Beside Me. Straight away you can tell that this is a top quality album. Kerri’s voice is rich and full of emotion on this opening ballad. The background music is unobtrusive giving Kerri’s voice the chance to shine through. Listeners will fall in love with Kerri’s voice after listening to this opening number.

To Good To Be is a slightly faster number with a rich country feel to it. Kerri’s voice is light and sounds natural and relaxed. Right Where You Are is another livelier number yet Kerri’s vocals still retain their gentleness.

A Tiny Glimpse is another slow song that showcases Kerri’s beautiful voice.

Shadow is my own personal favourite on the album. There are echoes of Andrea Corr in Kerri’s voice on this dreamy number.

I Know This For Sure is lovely song with some brilliant harmonies. There is a warmth to Kerri’s vocals, as a listener you quickly find yourself caught up in the lyrics of the song and Kerri’s soft, haunting vocals.

I Will Not Stand In Your Way is another luxurious ballad that is full of emotive lyrics that will tug at the listeners heartstrings. This is a classy number that deserves to be heard time and time again. Magic is another top quality ballad that showcases Kerri’s vocal depth and maturity.

On Top Of The World although different in style to Kerri’s previous song Shadow, has a similar dream like quality about it. This is perhaps the least striking track on the album.

Goodbye is a faster number with a catchy tune and sad lyrics that speak of leaving and letting someone go rather than trying to change their mind. Like In My Dreams is another great song with a slightly faster beat to it.

Everything completes this excellent album in fine style. This is an outstanding track to close on. Kerri’s voice is gentle yet strangely captivating on this final number. This is an impressive song that begs the listener to hear more.

Having been compared to the likes of Shawn Colvin and Jonatha Brooke, Kerri Arista has a lot to live up to but I think that she succeeds pretty well. This album is packed full of tender ballads that music fans will enjoy and want to hear more of. If this is Kerri’s third album I want to know why we haven’t heard a lot more of her before.