Vaneese Thomas is not only blessed with a deeply soulful singing style, but she also has the unerring ability to turn her thoughts and feelings into emotional statements expressed in song – in this case, in her latest album, very appropriately titled Stories In Blue. Thomas has created a musical odyssey on her ninth album that tracks the essence of her music. It’s also a tribute to her multi-talented approach: Thomas’s name is on every song, she co-produced the session, plays piano on the pensive “Wandering,” and, of course, graces us with her marvelous voice. The seven-song set of original stories in blue is filled with powerful music and gorgeous vocals, all of which reflect a lyrical journey from the origins of the blues to the final bars of a joyful gospel song. The tracks also serve as a sampler of the multiple musical talents of Thomas – she’s very much at home working in styles from blues to R&B to jazz to gospel.

The opening track and first step in this journey asks the question: “Do Y’all (know where the blues comes from?)” It’s a funky history lesson on blues origins in the human spirit: “Do y’all know where the blues comes from do y’all / Well it comes from faces dark as night / Bodies worn from toil and strife.” A pair of songs follows that illustrate traditional blues themes of lost love. “When You Were My Man” is a vocal treat, rhythmically at odds with its lonely message – “Every day I had peace of mind / But darkness did come, our love was undone.” That’s followed by the gorgeously sung ballad “Wandering,” an album centerpiece with its aching refrain: “Wandering on the street / Head in my hands / Shuffling my feet / What will I do without him / Ain’t nothing left for me.” A sensuous sax solo adds a melancholy refrain.

A rollicking stride piano with its foot-stomping tempo, Dixieland-flavored horns and Thomas scatting along, highlight the smartly sassy “1917.” The song was written by Vaneese as a joyous tribute to her multi-talented entertainer father, Rufus Thomas, the legendary patriarch of Memphis soul, who was born in 1917: “His colorful attire could take you higher / And leave you wanting more / His voice was a jewel and his blues gave you fuel / And shook you to the core.”

“The Last Thing On My Mind” is steady-rolling, hypnotic ode tuned to the troubles of a woman wronged on this journey: “But I found you done me wrong / To my surprise you up and gone / I had a love but now I moan / That was the last thing on my mind.” This blue story nears its end with the plaintive “7 Miles From Home” – “Seven miles from home / No more to roam / Oh, my soul longs for home.” The closer and blues stories’ end in spirit and fact is an uplifting a cappella gospel track, “End Of The Road,” with only handclaps for its rousing rhythms, and a solid chorus behind Thomas’s exuberant vocal statement: “I see the end of the road Lord, I’m on my way / On my way to Jordan’s shores maybe it’ll be today.”

Vaneese Thomas shines on her album debut for the brand-new, Memphis-based Overton Music label. This session is a tribute to her all-around skills as a marvelous story-telling songwriter and joyous, full-throated singer of those songs. Thomas not only embraces her musical roots, but she also refreshes them with her passionate Stories In Blue.

Jim White (a former music writer for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette & now writes the Blues Roadhouse)