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Though not as raw as the original versions, due mainly to the sometimes overly polished production of her sons Donto James and Sametto James, Etta's raw voice alone helps to retain the melancholy moods of these tales of lost love, strife, and movin' on.
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Though many of the songs here are associated with male artists, James usually succeeds in injecting her own womanly strength and style into her renditions, making the tunes indisputably her own.
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For all its merits, though, Matriarch is enjoyable but not quite the transcendent experience its title would suggest.
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Entertainment WeeklyHer voice isn't quite the nasty snarl it once was, but the attitude remains. [1/5/2001, p.70]
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A solid return to roots, Matriarch of the Blues finds Etta James reclaiming her throne -- and defying anyone to knock her off it.