Bemshi - Womanchild (1992)

Here is another album that I picked up at the time of it's release simply because of the cover art, the album title and the artist name. I had never heard a song by Bemshi, but all of the other elements were in place. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I was pretty sure it would be something different. And it was. Bemshi Shearer-Jones was certainly a mystical and spiritual person, and her music reflected this. Her father was a jazz musician, and at a young age, in the late 1970s and early 80s, she joined a few groups as a vocalist, including new-wave/disco act Funktionaries and The Discolitas, who did vocals on albums by leftfield jazz and no wave maestro James Chance (nee White). After that she did backing vocals for several artists (including Isle postee Boston Dawn).  These varied experiences obviously influenced her, as there are several different elements running through her music, definitely funk, soul, and jazz, but also bits of Indian and African music, as well as rock and folk. The first track is a pure pop ballad and "1 2 3 X I Love U" is a hot dance track. The album was produced in part by producers that worked on Heather Mullen's album that I posted previously, so there is a slight similarity to that, but this album is much more adventurous, and Bemshi's voice is much rawer. The song "Where's My Daddy" was the lead single, but it failed to chart anywhere, and Bemshi was dropped by her label, Capitol. Not much has been heard from her since, though she still does occasional backing vocals and performs around New York, most significantly as part of the Earthdriver collective, an eclectic group of musicians, and she also did featured vocals in 2008 on "Rosalie" by ambient electronic group Nova Nova. According to her bio she independently released a second album, Mirror, in collaboration with funk group The Family Stand, though it is a rare find.  She has also dabbled in acting, most notably performing on stage as Billie Holiday in Lady/Speak/Easy. In addition to making music and acting, in keeping with her mystical nature, she is now also a Vibrational Healer (whatever that is!).

Download Womanchild

1		I Need You
2		Color Me In
3		1 2 3 X I Love U
4		Where's My Daddy
5		Maybe Heaven's Better
6		Daily Reminder
7		Golden Child
8		Ain't That Love
9		African King
10		In My Mind
11		Within You, Without You
12		Thank You