Sunny Sweeney Finds Her Way at Rockin’ Rodeo

God bless Sunny Sweeney.

I like Miranda Lambert as much as anyone, but it’s pretty pitiful that hers is the first and last name mentioned when people start talking about mainstream females with strong personalities, the writing and singing talents to back them up, and an actual historical grounding in something those outside the Disney demographic would recognize as country music. That’s a pretty short checklist. Is it really too much to ask?

At the second of her two Sacramento shows last week (the first was an opening slot for Chuck Wicks), Sweeney showed herself to be the kind of singer critics love and audiences warm up to given half a chance. Granted, it is a little hard to know how to package her for consumption by listeners accustomed to the country-lite offered by Wicks: Can mainstream country audiences handle a blue-eyed twenty-something who covers Kitty Wells instead of Bon Jovi and gives a reading of “Good Hearted Woman” to curl Waylon or Willie’s toes? What about one whose instrumental fill of choice is almost always steel guitar?

Previews of her new music suggest that Sweeney is figuring out how to manage the balancing act. Where debut album Heartbreaker’s Hall of Fame seemed to lope right off the Texas plains, new lead single “From a Table Away” is at least aware of country radio’s existence. Among the other previews was a genuine stunner of a ballad called “My Bed” and songs with titles like “Drink Myself Single” and “You Don’t Know Your Husband Like I Do,” so it’s a pretty safe bet that Sweeney is serious about keeping it country.

The show wasn’t without its problems. The singer battled apparently irresolvable reverb issues through the entire first half before finally deciding to give her drummer and bassist the rest of the night off–a choice which ultimately showcased her twangy voice better anyway. Since she’s just now restarting her national touring for the new single and album, there were only about 50 people there to see her, mostly lined along the side and back walls as a handful of dancers scooted around the huge dance floor in front of the stage.

On the few occasions when the dancers headed to the bar, leaving the entire center of the room vacant, it must have felt like she was singing to an empty house, just a few dozen sets of eyeballs watching from the shadows. But we were there. If we were a little quiet, it could be that we were wrapped up in our thoughts, wondering: What becomes of a Loretta and Kitty disciple in a Lady Antebellum world?

Here’s hoping for only good things.

For more information on Sunny Sweeney, visit: Facebook | MySpace | Amazon