Well my life is finally slowing down from major roller coaster, to the speed of a kiddie’s coaster, and it’s time to get back to work. I received Ann Blair’s album Wanted You To Know quite some time ago and had part of the review done and saved on my laptop when the charger went belly up. I finally finished the review and, I have to be honest, it wasn’t all that difficult since the songs were all so good that I had them memorized already.

Blair made a statement on her album sleeve; “This is a journey, this is who I am, and these are ‘Pieces of Life’ that have somehow affected me. They could be a stranger’s story, they could be your story, maybe even mine, and I hope you find the message in them.” Such a profound statement and each song on this album has an equally strong message. Blair wrote the lyrics and music for each one.

The first title on the album “On My Way” has an old outlaw movie feel to it, but the message in the song is far from outlaw, Blair is singing about chasing a dream she has had since she was young. She then goes into an entertaining tale of love about a “Boy Across Town.” She wisely wrote this song as a waltz, and I couldn’t think of a better dance to fall in love to, whether it is for the first time or falling in love all over again, that’s what this song is for.

I mentioned the statement Blair made and I do believe the next song “Bottles n‘ Bruises” shares a powerful message about alcoholism and abuse and how it affects a loved one but Blair has the cure for the blues and quickly lifts your spirits with the next song. “Daddy’s Car” is a fun story about watching Dad racing cars and growing up wanting to do the same. She has a definite talent for setting words to music and a voice that delivers them with emotional precision.

My personal favorite has to be “Wanting You To Know.” This song says everything about love and relationships and it’s a lot of fun to sing along with. I was constantly impressed with the personal effort Blair put into this album. In her song “Back There” Blair delivers a wonderful country melody complete with harmonica, guitar and piano that also tells a compelling story about not wanting to go back to past trials in life.

So many of us chase dreams and “Time to Go” is about doing just that. Letting go of everything and chasing your future. Blair sings “your future is just up the road and its time for you to go.” Hand clapping and toe tapping are a requirement in “Love You By the Way;" an up tempo, fun song about the carefree feeling of falling in love.

The album closes with “Hero,” a song written for Blair’s son Eddie. This song has an amazing truth to it. Blair sings “Love is all you need to be a hero” and she’s absolutely right. This is an entertaining and thoughtfully written album with more life lessons than you can imagine. There are some important things Ann Blair Wanted You to Know and, when all is said and done, you will be glad you listened.