I got a jolt when I read Lindsay Smith’s biography. Turns out that she and I both attended the Young Writer’s Workshop at the University of Virginia while in high school and studied under the same artists. However, judging by her debut CD, “Tales from the Fruitbat Vat,” she probably did much better than I did at the final concert. Smith has a gorgeous voice, demonstrates strong songwriting skills, and absolutely jams on the guitar. I, on the other hand, got onstage and sang in a cracked voice that defied description. I’d never seen an entire crowd simultaneously wince in pain.

Ah, memories. Maybe if I drink the Robitussin straight out of the bottle, they’ll finally go away.

Eeenyhoo. Back to Lindsay Smith. “Tales from the Fruitbat Vat” is the debut CD from the Atlanta singer/songwriter, and calling it “folk,” as other reviewers have, doesn’t even begin to describe it. Many times throughout this CD, she and a small group of musicians flat-out rock like the all-star jam at the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony. Her lyrics are quick-witted and soul-touching. She makes feelings sound so real, I could touch them.

The images are beautiful. From “Friend”:

“There was a time in my mind that was kind of like an ice age.
White on white, and the trees had not been born.
And when I saw you, you were the very first creature,
Somewhat like myself: half-seen, half-formed.”

One of my favorites is the opening track, “My Mother is a Christian.” It’s a distanced, slightly amused but very affectionate look at her mother’s beliefs, while asserting her own stance:

“My mother is a Christian with rainbows in her eyes.
Her second love is fiction; you could say she’s into lies,
But the truth is she loves poetry; the truth is she loves me,
And the truth is she just loves the way she wants the world to be....
My mother is a Christian, but not me, not me, no, not me.”

Smith tries a little of everything here. “Molly Brown,” a racing bluegrass jam about a strange girl (“If you fell all alone, would it make a sound?”) includes a banjo and mandolin. “Answer Me Back” is a cool groove with smooth jazz vocal delivery. She teams up on vocals with Sumner Edward Thompson IV on “Homeward Gone,” and they sound great together. The sky rings with the echo of the final line, “Howl, howl to the moon.”

She quiets down at times. “We’re All Marys Here” is just her and her guitar, playing a honest and pure folk song that sounds like a hymn. But she can’t sit still for long. Most of these songs rock, and she has a voice that fits with every mood.

She must have blown the audience away at the Young Writer’s Workshop. I’d contact the staff to get some quotes about her, but after my performance there was this whole restraining order thing, and well....never mind. Just check out this CD. It will capture you on the first track.

Artist Website: www.Lindsay-Smith.com