A Girl Called Eddy

Amateur psychologists have a ready-made theory to use in analyzing the gorgeous, evocative music made by New Jersey singer-songwriter Erin Moran. She shares a moniker with the actress who played Joanie Cunningham on a ubiquitous TV sitcom, but her songs seldom concern themselves with happy days.

Erin/Eddy, who lists herself on this CD's liner as "E. Moran," has a throaty voice that coaxes maximum melancholy from compositions dealing with lost love ("Tears All Over Town"), withering love ("People Used to Dream About the Future") and the death of a beloved mother ("Kathleen"). Producer Richard Hawley sets these tales against ornate backdrops drenched with string substitutes and the occasional vibraphone. The result is simultaneously ravishing and ravished -- a chronicle of sadness and the strength needed to keep it at bay that makes absolutely no concessions to musical fashion.

The album's cover sports the outline of a vinyl platter, giving it the timeworn look of an LP from years gone by -- but the image isn't intended to evoke nostalgia. This Erin Moran specializes in hurt that feels like forever.