Lilith-worthy Shawn Colvin goes from southern rock to hip-hop on A Few Small Repairs.

Ah. Lilith Fair.

A collection of some of the whiniest, bleedingest-hearted, femme fatale folk-poppers to grace a single stage in a single night.

Personally, I would have driven all the way to Houston just to see Emmylou Harris, a beacon of traditional country among a bunch of alterna-folkies.

Jewel, thankfully, kept me away.

If the world were perfect -- i.e., conformed to my wishes -- I wouldn't mind seeing a Lilith Fair bill these ladies . . .

Sinead O'Connor, Gospel Oaks EP

A `new' soothing sound? Spare me. Gospel Oaks sounds like an extension of 1994's Universal Mother to me.

Was anybody listening?

The six-track EP contains one obvious single, the beautiful "This is for Mother You," four somewhat scatterly written fillers and a live performance of a traditional tune, "He Moved through the Fair." O'Connor, by the way, recorded a version of said folk tune on the excellent compilation, Common Ground.

Even at her quietest moments, O'Connor is a spitfire, but with Gospel Oaks, she has taken control of that flame and produced an introspective, simple work that still burns with her trademark intensity.

Long-time fans will be satiated.

Shawn Colvin, A Few Small Repairs

Colvin goes everywhere and anywhere with this album. From Southern rock rant ("Get Out of This House") to Sunday's sweetness ("Wichita Skyline,") from shuffle ("You and the Mona Lisa") to quasi-hip-hop ("Suicide Alley.")

The catchiness of "Sunny Came Home" was only the springboard. A Few Small Repairs delivers on the promise of the Colvin's breakthrough single. Colvin throws surprise after surprise on the album without sacrificing nary a hook.

Get it now.

10,000 Maniacs, Love Among the Ruins

Quite frankly, I'm glad Mary Ramsey is fronting the Maniacs.

While Natalie Merchant directed the group to some rather questionable creative choices, Ramsey and former Maniac John Lombardo stuck to the aesthetic of The Wishing Chair, 10,000 Maniac's 1985 major label debut. Over two albums, the aptly-named duo of John and Mary provided what post-In My Tribe Maniacs couldn't.

On Love Among the Ruins, John and Mary are subsumed into the Maniacs proper, and the results are quite nice. No track on this album really stands out, but the band hasn't sounded this confident in a long time. Ramsey's voice lends a sweetness noticeably lacking in the Maniac's last two studio albums.

And you thought they were through three years ago.

Greg Bueno, a UH journalism graduate now living in Austin, Texas, also publishes "The Soloist's Notebook," a music 'zine.

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