Posted October 6, 200717 yr http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/Artists/S/Stone_Joss/ConcertReviews/2007/10/06/jamJossStone256.jpg CALGARY - Joss Stone is a love 'n' spoonful of sugar, spice and everything nice. It's almost impossible not to warm up to this energetic young performer who likes to bop and hop around on stage barefoot while singing her neo-soul tunes backed by a full band, including three backup singers, trumpet and saxophone. Stone arrived on stage at the University of Calgary's Mac-Ewan Hall last night decked out in a green sequins, Diana Ross-style dress. Her strong expressive voice tells the tale of a woman many years her senior, making it hard to believe the 20-year-old is still too young to drink south of the border. There's something very squeaky clean about Stone. Maybe it's her youth, maybe it's her beaming smile and vivacious onstage personality, but the blond (currently dyed-purple) vocalist doesn't quite have the same pained-appeal to her voice and presence that some of her predecessors (think Janis Joplin and Tina Turner) or her contemporaries (think Jill Scott and Macy Gray) do. That's not to say it won't come to her with time and a few more wrinkles around the eyes. Besides, too much pained-realism can be a catch-22. Think of Stone's fellow British soul-sista Amy Winehouse. It's preferable to watch a sober, healthy-looking Joss Stone on stage over a drugged up Winehouse any day. At least you know for sure Stone is going to show up for the gig and she won't do anything weird such as hitting herself repeatedly on the head with her mic while muttering dirty words, something Winehouse did while performing in the U.K. a few months ago. Stone insists she's far from unscathed by the harsh, heartbreaking realities of life and love. She says much of her recent album, Introducing Joss Stone, was inspired by recent heartbreak. "I was thinking, do I just have really bad taste -- or am I just unlucky?" Stone said to the crowd before breaking into Music, a song she penned about how music is her one and only true love. She got her first record deal by age 16 and since then she has sold more than 10 million albums and won a Grammy Award. Stone is a talent to be reckoned with, and as she progresses through her sure-to-be fruitful-career, hopefully she will remain bright-eyed and barefoot. Californian soul-singer Warren Flandez opened last night's sold-out show with a smooth R&B set. By THERESA TAYLER - Sun Media
