Turbula
Online since August 2002
Music

Well-crafted songs, performed well

Reviewed March 2007
This review originally published February 15, 2007 in The North County Times

It Ain't Rocket Surgery
It Ain't Rocket Surgery
By Wendy Bailey

Self-released: 2007

To hear sound clips or learn more about this release, Turbula recommends viewing Bailey's MySpace.com profile.

A polished, five-song EP from Encinitas' Wendy Bailey, "It Ain't Rocket Surgery," offers an easy-on-the-ears flavor of power pop. Like a punched-up Edie Brickell, Bailey writes accessible pop songs that lean a bit toward the folk side &3150; and then performs them with a confident delivery wrapped around a warm, rich voice.

It all comes together at its best on "She Walks Groovy" and "Harmless," a knockout pair of pure AM-styled pop-rock nuggets. With jangly guitars and a loping beat behind her oh-so-cool vocals, both songs are classic 4-minute radio songs, textbook examples on writing a hit tune.

True, radio has changed and a well-crafted song with a stellar performance is no longer enough to get on the air. But for those of us living in San Diego County, Wendy Bailey is making some very nice ear candy.

Review by Jim Trageser. Jim is a writer and editor living in Escondido, Calif., and was a contributor to the "Grove Press Guide to Blues on CD" (1993) and "The Routledge Encyclopedia of the Blues" (2005).



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