Singer Saves Her Energy for Efforts on the Stage

By JAMES E. FOWLER

Oct. 3, 1996 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

Sue Foley has been on the road singing the blues for eight years, and boy is she tired.

Foley, who is performing tonight at Cozy’s, called me from a phone booth in downtown Austin on her way to a doctor’s appointment. She sounded so low energy that after a string of yeahs, no’s, uh-huh’s and guess-so’s, I asked if it was something serious. Was she feeling OK?

“Just routine,” she said. After a moment of silence she continued, “I’m pretty mellow, until when I get up on stage.”

The music on her new album, “Walk in the Sun,” is anything but tired. The CD, released Aug. 9, is her fourth but the first to receive major distribution. Her label, Antone’s Records, is distributed through Discovery Records, a subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Singer-guitarist Foley met Austin music maven Clifford Antone, sent him a demo, and he invited her down to Texas. The petite, Telecaster-toting young woman’s first two albums for Antone’s blues label were “Young Girl Blues” and “Without a Warning.” Her third, “Big City Blues,” was produced by Stephen Bruton, who’s credited with bringing a rock flair to Foley’s sound.

Unlike her first three albums, “Walk in the Sun,” also produced by Bruton, features 11 Foley originals, no covers. Foley plays lead guitar and sings. Her guitar work is adequate, but her voice is something else again.

She sings with a sassy spark and bravado that’s completely different from her speaking voice. Some, myself included, have heard a Dylanseque drawl in her vocals, not in tone so much as phrasing. It’s most audible on the album’s opening cut, “Try to Understand.” Is this 27-year-old Canadian a closet Dylan freak?

“He’s been more of an influence in the last couple years as I started writing songs more,” she said without a trace of enthusiasm. The Dylan albums she’s been listening to are “Highway 61 Revisited” and “Blonde on Blonde”--both recorded before she was born.

Otherwise, Foley describes her musical influences as fairly eclectic, including country blues, church music and Chicago blues of the ’40 and ‘50s.

“I run the gamut,” she said, sounding nearly exhausted.

Foley and her band--bassist Jon Penner and drummer Freddie Walden--spend about six months every year touring. “The road gets tiring, but it’s always a big thrill when you get a new product,” she said.

“Walk in the Sun” is her final album under her current recording contract, and Foley is looking for a better deal next time around.

“I want to bring my touring up to the next level,” she said. “You know--move from a van to a bus, stay at five-star hotels instead of motor lodges . . . “ she said as her voice trailed off.

* Sue Foley and Teddy Morgan perform tonight at Cozy’s Bar & Grill, 14058 Ventura Blvd., Sherman Oaks. $5 cover. Call (818) 986-6000.

Dead: I wanted to check out Dead Head Night at the Cobalt Cafe in Canoga Park. Silly me. I thought they meant the Grateful Dead.

I arrived about 9:45 p.m. Thursday, the crowd numbered five, including me. A guy with a guitar was on stage warbling a tune in his own unique style.

Things are pretty loose at the Cobalt. I walked up to the counter to get a drink, but no one was there. It reminded me of the “Twilight Zone.” I selected a seat; there were a lot to choose from.

After he finished his song, the guitarist announced: “If you’re here to see the band, they’re not coming. It’s only me.”

Oh well, that explains it. Musta been the Dodger game on TV that night--pennant race, all that stuff.

After talking to his two best friends in the audience for a couple of minutes, the guitarist sang another number. I stayed for two more and then I left.

I wanted to hear more music so I drove around the block and went to the Rock. This is a dance club for the proletariat--T-shirts, jeans, live bands, pool tables and more than 100 brands of beer.

The joint was jumpin’ with a good-size crowd for a Thursday night. Even though Friday was a workday, several couples occupied the big dance floor and all the pool tables were busy. On stage, a fog machine churning out clouds made it difficult to tell where the fog ended and the cigarette smoke began.

The band, I didn’t catch its name, was doing the Human Jukebox Thing--playing workman-like versions of other people’s songs and and doing it well. People would shout out requests and the band would respond with something like: “Somebody wants to hear some (insert artist’s name). We’ll get to that a bit later, right now we’re going to play something by Tom Petty . . .” It’s a job and someone has to do it. But the band also managed to sneak in an original tune.

When the band took a well-deserved break, I finished my beer and went home. I had to go to work Friday, too.

* The Rock, 7230 Topanga Canyon Blvd., Canoga Park. No cover. Call (818) 347-7668.