Persimmons

Jim Lauderdale leads two lives. As a songwriter, he has come up with some of the catchiest, smartest mainstream-country material of the '90s. His songs have been the highlights of albums by George Strait, Patty Loveless, Mark Chesnutt and Mandy Barnett. His songwriting has made him rich, and his poorly-selling solo albums have made him a critics' hero. His two lives have rarely intersected. They finally do on his new album, "Persimmons." Upstart, a subsidiary of Boston's independent Rounder Records, invited Lauderdale to pick out his 15 favorite unreleased song demos. He chose mainstream country ballads and jittery rockabilly; hard-edged country-rock and Chicago blues. He's good at everything he tries, and "Persimmons" provides the best available overview of his talents. It also includes a handful of country hits just waiting to happen.

Though he uses the same ingredients every time out of the gates, he puts enough of an original spin on his rockers and ballads, giving them slight melodic or lyrical twists which make Persimmons more rewarding with each listen.