One Guitar Woman, A Tribute To The Female Pioneers Of Guitar, the first acoustic album by guitarist Sue Foley among sixteen personal opuses, let’s say it bluntly, is a tour de force! In addition, it is probably a milestone that will remain significant in her career. After having collected, on numerous occasions, several awards and honours from both the United States and Canada, Blues Music Awards, Austin Music Awards, Maple Blues Awards, the musician from Ottawa returned to work without resting on her laurels. Heart and soul, she went to meet the artists who inspired her, trailblazers and visionaries from the beginning of the twentieth century, the era of the first blues music recorded and broadcast on the radio. These pioneers of the guitar, resilient artists and magicians of the stage, it was they who challenged her and showed her the way, from the beginning of her career. These extend beyond the confines of blues, the music of the “facts of life”, and we find them in various roots or even traditional music, such as country, Tex-Mex, flamenco and even at the heart of classical music that has soul! A common denominator of these musical artists who illustrated their era and expanded the history of the guitar is that they are capable, even virtuoso, guitarists and that they have also marked the imagination by means of expression of their different styles, characters and particular attributes. Their names are: Elizabeth Cotten, a self-taught Piedmont fingerpicking style guitar that she plays with finesse. She began her career when she was already in her sixties. “Freight Train” and “Babe It Ain’t No Lie” are the chosen selections. Memphis Minnie, born in 1897, is recognized as one of the most striking and colourful blueswomen and guitarists in the history of the blues. Endowed with a strong personality, she was able, through strength of character and boldness, to carve out and maintain her place in the harsh, almost exclusively male blues environment of her time. In “My Girlish Days” and “Ain’t Nothing In Rambling” are the evocative youthful titles chosen. Maybelle Carter, recognized as the matriarch of country music, was also Johnny Cash’s mother-in-law and a significant mentor to him. She is an institution and a foundation herself and she incorporates different styles of guitar playing into her music. “Lonesome Homesick Blues” is the song selected for this tribute album. In addition, Sue Foley even wrote a song in her honor which highlights her substantial contribution to country music through the Carter Family. This is “Maybelle’s Guitar”, Sue’s lyrics to the tune of AP Carter’s “Wildwood Flower.” Lydia Mendoza, nicknamed “Mother of Tejano Music” or Tex-Mex music, has had a career that has spanned six decades. She is a recognized and celebrated legend of the twentieth century. Sue Foley aptly interprets the poignant song “Mal Hombre”, the story of a heartless man who abandons a young girl after using her. She translated the verses from Spanish to English, keeping only the chorus in the original language. Foley’s adaptation of this song screams truth! Elvie Thomas and Geeshie Wiley are recognized country blues artists. They recorded only six titles together, while creating a deep impact, notably with “Motherless Child Blues” and “Last Kind Blues”. These tunes are covered with aplomb on this album. Sister Rosetta Tharpe  is celebrated as the “Godmother of Rock and Roll.” She influenced icons such as Little Richard, Johnny Cash and Chuck Berry. She is said to have been the first gospel artist to transition to a career in popular music. For this collection, Sue Foley chose to interpret “My Journey To The Sky”, an original composition by the artist which expresses a more reflective and profound aspect of her rich experience. With the choice of Ida Presti, a virtuoso guitarist born in France in 1924, Sue takes us into the fascinating world of the guitar within classical music. She offers us her personal interpretation of “Romance in A Minor” by Niccolo Paganini, the eminent violinist and composer of the nineteenth century. Sue Foley mentions that she has great admiration for this guitarist for her dexterity, her depth and her feeling. Charo, this multi-talented Spanish-American artist, actress, singer, comedienne is the first guitarist that Foley says she saw in performance. This classically trained artist coupled with mastery of the flamenco style left a deep impression on her with her flamboyant personality and brilliant playing. She covers, on this anthology disc, the very popular classic, “La Malaguena”. The Ottawa-Texas guitarist says Charo is even the reason she plays Spanish guitar. In fact, on this extraordinary project, she uses only a nylon string guitar with a successful unifying effect. With the album, One Guitar Woman, A Tribute To The Female Pioneers of Guitar, Sue Foley delivers an exceptional achievement conceived and carried out with care and skill, as well as interpreted with sincerity and accuracy demonstrating that she is a creative artist who does not shy away from the beaten track. Sue Foley has shown that she is at the top of her game! (Pierre Jobin – golyblues@hotmail.com)