A cultural snapshot in bite size pieces, tasty. When we interviewed the Australian wonder Anne McCue some months back, she spoke of a movement afoot in L.A., a wave of songwriting and sound that we'd be hearing more about soon. Unreal City represents "the tip of the iceberg" of that activity, and it's Anne who pops up as the executive producer of this compilation. She's a get it done person, as she continues to prove. In her first couple of years in the States, she got on tour with Lucinda Williams and opened for Richard Thompson, that's making a mark.

Many of these artists are flying under the radar, but several have achieved critical or material success. Notably, Marcella Detroit, whose song "If" closes the disc, was in a top British group in the 90s called Shakespeare's Sister, and she co-wrote "Lay Down Sally" with Eric Clapton.

By the second and third tunes, Jim Bianco's "Two Birds" and "Barroom Dances" by Daveen DiGiacomo, I was pulled right in. Marc Platt's "My Troubled Friend" hits home, and Tom Freund's "Sympatico" hits a home run, he's a real find. Each song tells a completely different story, from a wholly different point of view.

This is much more interesting than most compilations. It's not a label's pick of their roster or a tribute record to some famous person's catalogue, but a view into a scene. It's an L.A. offbeat pop sampler. You could easily find several artists who resonate with you, so we encourage you to visit the website (at radioplayers.com) to hear a sample of any or all of the twelve tracks. We will feature clips of our four favorites, but there's something for everyone.

Kudos to Anne McCue for producing the first compilation of the L.A. Song Alliance. Like the Fast Folk CDs of Jack Hardy's famous songwriter gatherings in NYC, or the CDs of The Nashville Underground (see our review) these provocative discs are excellent foils for artists and culture vultures alike. Check out the clips on the Listen page.   • FG
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