Artist:  Jewel
Title:  Sweet and Wild
Label:  Valory Records

In the mid nineties many were captivated by Jewel's rise to success. She went from living in her car and performing in small local venues to the release of her debut album, Pieces of You, which released in 1995. Since then she has sold over 27 million albums worldwide and received profuse media exposure. She has even made a couple of turns in genre since the outset of her career, arriving in the country music scene in 2008.

Jewel continues on that path with the release of her June 2010 album, Sweet and Wild, a title that she says, "represents the walking dichotomy that is me." According to Jewel there have always been "country" songs on her records, but her label was timid about country music. A majority of the tracks are love songs (laden with a bit of twang and some strategically placed steel guitar and mandolin), and they ebb and flow through the high and low points of romance.

Jewel kicks off with the energetic "No Good in Goodbye," which chronicles the laments of an individual who "mistook being alone for being free" and longs to be reunited with a lost love. Also "Bad As It Gets" and "No More Heartaches" echo with tearful recounts of broken relationships. On the other hand, she brings the blissful and glossy "Summer Home in Your Arms" and "Stay Here Forever" to the table—the latter of which was chosen as the lead single for the soundtrack of the 2010 star-studded film, Valentine's Day. The only two cuts that deviate from Jewel's overall romantic focus are "Fading"— a song about a woman having a mental breakdown in a Wal-Mart bathroom, and "What You Are," an empowering anthem that encourages the individual to dig deeper and find what is already inside.

While Jewel is obviously a gifted songwriter and performer, those who are looking for the Jewel of 1995 (when she crooned the thought-provoking "Who Will Save Your Soul") may be disappointed with this disc. However, fans have the opportunity to hear the simple acoustic version of all 11 songs on the deluxe edition of the CD — cleverly titled Sweet and Mild —which may satisfy her hardcore fans who are trying to see past the country label. The same old Jewel is underneath all the layers of banjo and fiddle; you just have to listen a little harder to find her. Country fans are likely to go wild about this record, but longtime Jewel followers may remain a bit more skeptical.


**This review first published on June 30, 2010.