Tonia Woods – All That Glitters

Tonia Woods
All That Glitters
(Renata – 2001)
by Carmen Miller

Although this CD will probably end up in the R&B bin at the store, I decided to review it anyway because her style should not be categorized like that. Tonia Woods is a soulful, sultry songstress and this CD showcases her vocal and composing talents. If You Let Me, one of the seven original tracks, is a gospel-tinged beauty featuring the sax of Marshall Keyes. Mad Love is an intense, moaning ballad in the Anita Baker or Miki Howard tradition. Go The Distance again features Marshall Keys’ saxaphone and the guitar of Sirdjan Kolaravich in a sexy, sassy jazz track that has you finger-popping and head-nodding.

Seven Days, Seven Nights is another mood piece where Tonia shows her range, but in a more uptempo groove. Her strong cover of The Lord’s Prayer reaches back to her gospel-music roots, and she takes the Ann Peebles class I can’t stand the Rain and reshapes it. Tonia Woods is an up and coming singer with a lot of talent. I’d like to see her star keep rising. Anita Baker is my girl, but she’s a long time between records. Tonia Woods fills that gap nicely.