Reviews for Robin’s music

Robin Frederick

Water Falls Down – CD

“Over Euro-inflected grooves and airy orchestration, songwriter and artist Robin Frederick overlays a suite of brilliantly performed songs. WATER FALLS DOWN spotlights Frederick, a songwriter who has written extensively for film and television – and who was on the other side of the desk as an A&R executive for Rhino Records – as an artist. She shows an equal facility for neo-hipster jazz grooves and rhythmically atmospheric flow. Aided by Grant Geissman, Roy Campanella III, and others, the sterling performers never overshadow Frederick’s wise, connected performances.

But it is through the lyrics that Frederick truly reveals the breadth of her literary pedigree. The offbeat Bowling For Love delivers this prime couplet: You’re welcome at the alley / If you reinvent Rimbaud. / If you change your opinions / Just like you change your clothes. Frederick, who has recorded for Virgin/Higher Octave in the past has released this album on the Sound Experience label. You can check it out by paying a visit to www.robinfrederick.com.”

~ Dan Kimpel, Music Connection


“WATER FALLS DOWN is a gorgeous CD… it creates a hypnotic, rhythmic world reminiscent of Enya and Enigma….”

~Janet Roston, dance90210.com


“As we go about our daily lives with too much to do, triple tasking, truth can stop us in our tracks and give us an epiphany. Robin Frederick’s “Water Fall Down” CD was an experience like this for me. I put it on in the background just to get familiar with the melodies so I could listen to it again later “for real” but every time I’d put it on and try to do anything else, I would find myself standing there just listening.

I finally gave in and listened as I have, in the past, devoured a new Don Henley record. I was shocked by the depth of truth Robin has gotten to in cuts like “Married to the Muse” and the title track. Even when she’s light and witty, there’s a metaphoric level on which the wit stands, which deepens it (to my mind, the best kind of humor).

The melodies, chords and sound of both the vocals and tracks are remarkable as well. It is no surprise that Robin both engineered and produced this CD. Her vision is never compromised by the stamp of an outsider. Everything is audible and the whole overall impression is haunting. The intense emotion against the backdrop of the calm, almost surreal feel of the music and vocals is unique.

I’ve never heard a record like this. This is not a “new age” record. It is material which is in many ways “spiritual,” in many ways deeply romantic. It is subject matter at a level we seldom go but somehow remember our way when we are taken there by a master. Robin Frederick is just such a master. Go there with her. You will come back safe and the wiser for having been touched so deeply.”

~Harriet Schock, Songwriter/Recording Artist/Author


“I love it! Musically mystical and evocative with enough body grounding groove to balance it. Lyrically cliché-free with some profound observations (“The part of you that knows hates the part of you that needs.”) … effortlessly walks the road between emotion and intellect, the abstract and concrete. ‘Let’s Go Bowling’ and ‘You are Here’ made me smile. Can’t wait for volume 2.”

~John Braheny; author, The Craft And Business Of Songwriting”


From first listen I was reminded of the type of CD I would put in my player if I had an intimate gathering of friends in my house. The style is often compared to Sade, Enya, Julia Fordham, and EBTG, not bad company to keep. Robin’s voice is certainly the shining point on this CD. She reaches the depths of her soul to evoke a feeling of peace and gentle happiness.

This is not to say that the backing instrumentation is weak. It draws the listener in and creates a sense of well being. Robin’s lyrics show a keen insight into the human condition. On “The Messenger she pines, “What I can’t change I can’t regret/But I was there the day we met/With words unspoken love begins/And now I know that’s how it ends.” Robin has a unique voice for remembering loves lost. On “California Girl” she remembers “Do you think of me and feel the shelter/Do you think of me and feel the warmth/Do you remember…”

This CD could easily become an important part of your mellow and new age section. I recommend giving it a listen and I am sure you will decide for yourself that it is worthwhile.

~Dennis Halsey, BestFemaleMusicians.com


“Love your latest! Lyrics and voice, STRONGER than ever!”

~Al Santos, WJZW-FM


“Robin Frederick’s WATER FALLS DOWN is an intoxicating work, a standout achievement in contemporary songwriting and production. The lyrics are haunting and intriguing poetry; the music is engaging with a Sting-like sophistication; Robin’s voice is beautifully gentle and mysterious, a fitting counterpoint to the energy of the songs. The production values are nothing short of gorgeous.”

~Stephanie Bennett, composer, arranger, producer: Harpworld Music Co.


After many decades of love songs (and other songs) that have used, abused and recycled clichés, Robin’s music is a fasinatingly welcomed voyage for this listener, who is also a singer and songwriter. … Her lyrics are like reading a documentary field journal with raw personal experiences that she had witnessed but was powerless to change. Her music will be best appreciated by seasoned lovers, avant garde poets and the self examined. … I found it a privilege to travel with her through these intense love and loss experiences. The uncharted territory and deep feeling fjords of this most personal voyage with Robin was very vulnerable and real.

~Paula Marie Jones

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