Christine Kane

Christine Kane's career jump-off is the kind that makes aspiring songwriters sigh. She was writing songs and waiting tables when a singer-songwriter friend canceled at the last minute and asked her to fill in. She did, the club owner booked her for two weekends a month for a solid year, and presto -- this Asheville, North Carolina, singer had a career. Her vocal range, akin to Shawn Colvin's, alternates sultry alto with gritty soprano to make the mysterious narrator of a song such as "The Way Clouds Do" come alive. A road warrior who plays more than 200 shows a year, Kane has toured with the likes of Greg Brown, Los Lobos, and Rosanne Cash. With her latest, Rain and Mud and Wild and Green, it's easy to hear what that club owner heard not all that long ago. Sigh.