Back to You

When Anita Cochran holds her red-and-white Telecaster on the cover of her debut album "Back to You" (Warner Bros.), it's no prop. The Michigan singer-songwriter not only plays all the lead-guitar parts on the disc, but she does so with a bright, biting tone and a fast, hard attack that reminds one of Don Rich's work with Buck Owens & the Buckaroos. Cochran isn't that good yet, but there's an energy and individual personality in her picking that carries over into her vocals. Her songwriting isn't as strong as her playing and singing--her sentimental ballads are especially cliché-ridden--but her uptempo numbers are irresistibly sassy. This is most obvious on "Girls Like Fast Cars," sort of a sequel to Wynonna's "Girls with Guitars." --Geoffrey Himes