Originally published Monday, June 6, 2011 at 7:01 PM

Diane Schuur's new country disc a keeper

Auburn-bred jazz diva Diane Schuur has gone back to her roots with an album of country songs, "The Gathering." It's a heartbreaker and a real keeper. Other new CD releases this week include the Tedeschi Trucks Band's "Revelator," a self-named album by Ronnie Dunn and the Arctic Monkeys' "Suck It and See."

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Diane Schuur, 'The Gathering' (Vanguard)

Diane Schuur launched her career as a teenager with a hit country single. Now the Auburn-bred jazz diva has doubled back to her roots with an album so pure, so emotionally true, so sweetly satisfying, it makes you wonder why she ever changed course. For all her bluesy sophistication, Schuur's voice here is as dazzling and humble as a field of cornflowers. Her apple pie, girl-next-door directness, with a trace of hurt, serves her to a tee on the Patsy Cline opener, "Why Can't He Be You." But that's just the start of an album of early '60s heartbreakers, mostly ballads, that might bring back memories you thought you'd gotten over. There's a haunting "Beneath Still Waters," famously covered by Emmylou Harris; a riveting take on Willie Nelson's fatalistic hit, "When Two Worlds Collide"; and the sadder-than-sad Kris Kristofferson masterpiece "Nobody Wins." Merle Haggard's "Today I Started Loving You Again" gets a jazzier, upbeat treatment, with some tasteful scat singing, but it's the only hint of Schuur's jazz background. This one's a keeper.

Paul de Barros, Seattle Times jazz critic

Other new releases

Tedeschi Trucks Band, "Revelator" (Sony Masterworks)

Ronnie Dunn, "Ronnie Dunn" (Sony Nashville)

Arctic Monkeys, "Suck It and See" (Domino)