It looks like Alison has pulled away from the station. That would be Union Station, the band that she has been connected with for years. Her previous albums have been a confusing mix of tender ballads and up-tempo bluegrass jams, and even though the Union hasn't completely dissolved (Forget About It features the Station players and plenty of bluegrass instrumentation) this record finds Alison focusing on her strength--crisp, lovely torch songs.

She has one of the most distinctive voices in the biz, and though this new one doesn't bowl you over on the first few spins (the exception being Todd Rundgren's "It Wouldn't Have Made Any Difference") it grows on you soon enough, and draws you right in.

Union Station featured some fine pickers, and I like a good bluegrass toe-tapper, but personally I prefer the even predictability of this record. Many of the songs are written by ex-Doobie Brother Michael McDonald and one of the albums finer moments is a rendition of Hugh PrestwoodÕs ÒGhost In This House.Ó

It appears that Alison is slowly pulling away from the Station and engineering her own career and, in my opinion, heading in the right direction. Are train metaphors easy? Forget-about-it.