Baby Dee

Baby Dee has had an interesting career, to say the least. In addition to having worked as a circus performer, church organist and street spectacle, the 50-something songwriter has toured with Current 93 and released several records for David Tibet’s Durtro label. Contrary to what you might expect, the tight, polished piano tunes on Safe Inside the Day (her Drag City debut) sound more like Randy Newman than, say, Diamanda Galas. Aside from the lethargic opener, Baby Dee carries the iconoclastic ’70s singer/songwriter torch, and admirably so. The problem is her voice. What’s meant to be a stylishly skewed cabaret croon (think Antony) comes across as the gurgling of a less charming Tiny Tim; she sounds like the bum at the back of the streetcar, ruining an otherwise pleasant trip with a loud, drunken tangent. Unlike Bonnie "Prince” Billy (who produced the album, along with Matt Sweeney), who’s an average songwriter but an appealing character, Baby Dee is a talented composer who sabotages her exceptional compositions with her wobbly, gratingly whimsical delivery. Of course, obnoxiousness is in the eye of the beholder. The fact that Baby Dee’s delivery is bound to be divisive might be a good thing. You might say that it’s better to be loved or hated than to be quietly tolerated, and I’m sure she would agree.