Shawn Colvin

Having penned her way to a trio of Grammys, Shawn Colvin originally honed her considerable skills covering Joni Mitchell and Joan Baez, and has been known to incorporate songs by such diverse artists as Cee-Lo into her live sets. Uncovered, the longtime local's second covers album, both respects its material's wellsprings and celebrates them through a different, and at times unrecognizable, lens. "Tougher Than the Rest" exemplifies this musical trompe l'oeil, its guitar-picked longing completely masking the original swagger and slicked-up synth of Bruce Springsteen's version. Colvin adds to, rather than reinvents, most of the songs, however, as exemplified by the exaggerated country styling of Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Lodi." On Gerry Rafferty's "Baker Street," the singer's croon gets backing help from the hushed vocals of David Crosby, whose partner Graham Nash's "I Used to Be a King" also appears on Uncovered. Perfect closer, Tammy Wynette's 1973 hit "'Til I Get It Right" envelops Shawn Colvin in a whirl of pedal steel.