Kim Richey”Kim Richey” MercuryYou can count on...

Kim Richey

“Kim Richey”

Mercury

You can count on the fingers of a three-toed sloth the number of singers in Nashville with voices as lovely as Richey’s who also can write with as much illuminating honesty as she displays in her debut album.

Sounding like a cross between Trisha Yearwood (who recently recorded Richey’s song “Those Words We Said”) and Kathy Mattea, Richey sings strongly, sweetly or plaintively as the mood dictates. And she gives herself ample moods to survey in the baker’s dozen songs she’s written (with the help of several collaborators).

Generally steering clear of easy phrases and by-the-numbers situations, the Ohio native writes with a visceral credibility about love on the wane and love reclaimed. In “That’s Exactly What I Mean,” she communicates as much in what she doesn’t say as in what she does: “Lately we’ve been missing something / Love is wearing at the seams / You say ‘Baby, ah it ain’t nothing’ / And that’s exactly what I mean.” She tackles an oft-mined subject in “You’ll Never Know”--the rejected lover who refuses to display her pain when passing her ex on the street--but pulls it off in a touching tale that celebrates the inner strength she has discovered. Throughout, she sings with a conviction that elevates the material.

Richey looks like the female newcomer to watch in 1995.