Artist: Linda Lewis
Album: A Tear and a Smile
Genre: Soul, R&B
Label: Big Break Records
Released: 1983/2012
Quality: FLAC (tracks+.cue)
Tracklist:
- Destination Love (3:42)
- I Am What I Am (4:40)
- Take Me for a Little While (4:22)
- Don't Let It Go (3:53)
- You Don't Know What You're Missing (4:36)
- (Close the Door) Take Your Heart (4:05)
- I Can't Get Enough (3:47)
- This Boy (3:25)
- Why Can't I Be the Other Woman (4:04)
- Sweet Heartache (4:16)
Bonus Tracks - Come on Back (3:37)
- I Can Take It (3:59)
- Class/Style (I've Got It) (12" Groove Mix) (5:51)
- You Turned My Bitter into Sweet (12" Megamix) (10:15)
- Class/Style (I've Got It) (Single Version) (4:02)
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Despite several rough patches at the end of the 1970s, Linda Lewis rebounded with glorious aplomb on her September 1983 album, A Tear and a Smile. More than any of its predecessors, this album finds the singer in complete control of both her songwriting and her remarkable, dynamic vocal range -- at the same time continuing down the path she forged during the previous decade. From start to finish, the songs are filled to bursting with soft ballads and wildly far-reaching grooves, helped along by Bert de Coteaux's immaculate production. But, as good as "I Am What I Am" and the haunting "Sweet Heartache" are, where she gathers her force and puts all her strengths together is on the absolutely stunning title track. Self-penned, "A Tear and a Smile" finds Lewis running without any flaws at all. That just leaves room (and barely!) for "Why Can't I Be the Other Woman," a duet between Lewis and Luther Vandross. His silky soul provides a delicious accompaniment to her own indefatigable style, while Gwen Guthrie adds her voice to the background to amplify the mood even further. A Tear and a Smile leaves little lacking and remains one of Lewis' best efforts, a remarkable portrait of the artist's own growth, of her increasing confidence in her talents, and of her manifold contributions to the face of British soul.
Review by Amy Hanson