SINGLE REVIEW: HANNAH WHITE - HARD HITTING MEMORIES / FINE DAY

Quite where Hannah White finds the time is anyone's guess, with so many things pulling on her every available moment, so here at #TEAMw21 we like to ensure that she can sit her down for at least two minutes and bathe in the feedback of the first two singles from "Fine Day", her forthcoming album.

"Hard Hitting Memories" is the sound of Sutton Southern Soul. There may not be much instrumentation, but when you have sound as perfect as Lars Hammersland on the piano and Hammond organ, there really is little need for much else. #TEAMw21 had the immense pleasure of seeing Hannah perform this solo in Basingstoke, where it all but stole the show and this version is equally affecting.

It's a song of grief, and looking for some way to relieve those emotions. The opening verse, mainly played to an acoustic guitar with the most minimal of percussion, makes clear that the feeling is so overwhelming that Hannah would give up almost anything to see her father once more.

"I'd give up the feel of the sun on my skin

I'd walk away from the house that I'm in

I'd lose the sound of the songbird in spring

If I could see you again"

There is an emotionally drained tinge to Hannah's vocals, and the guitar sound is of a hand almost reluctantly dragged across the strings. It is so deeply heartfelt, managing to capture the depths of despair and just what you would contemplate giving up, to get out of such a place.

"I’d walk the world, cross forest and plain

I’d climb a mountain, the hardest terrain

Just for the rest from remembering

And to see you again"

 The atmosphere created by Lars is deeply spiritual and the chorus, the one time when Hannah lets free with her vocals

"Flood-lit, these hard-hitting memories

Playback again and again

And one by one, they keep me from, moving on"

The final verse needs no explanation - Hannah puts all her feelings on the page

"I’d fall to my knees I’d beg and I’d pray

Just for that old familiar way

You hold on to my hand saying it will all be okay

Oh to see you again"

The full spirituality of the tune comes when Hannah is supported by a choir of voices on what is set to become an emotional roller coaster for both artist and audience when it gets played at next months album launch

The picture gracing the sleeve of the album's title track has Hannah at one with nature, enjoying a peaceful stroll through a green surrounding - a chance to relax for a few moments and maybe collect her thoughts.

We have always maintained that Hannah has one of the most gifted country voices in the UK and here it is given full rein over her most overtly country sounding song in a while, with Sara Jory's pedal steel prominent. This is a classic country sound imbued with a little "sound of the sixties" melody to make the sweetest combination.

The opening is sung just to a piano, which makes it seem all the more personal, evoking the sound of the great Seventies singer songwriters.

"It was there in her eyes that she’d never love again

It seems laying down the shield is by far the hardest thing

But his sword is on the ground

And he won’t pick it up again - He won’t pick it up again"

That opening verse seems to be the start of something positive, with the female partner accepting that this is true love and therefore she's laying open her defensive wall one last time while at the same time the man is laying himself open.

Within a verse however the hardest hitting couplet undoubtedly comes as Hannah sings

"And she knows that he’s letting her go

There’s always someone letting her go"

It is the confirmation that she is destined to always be alone. It ties back to the opening line which at the time seemed optimistic but in the cold light of later events seems more a sad realisation that this is how it is always going to be.

All of this heartbreak leads to the most melodious of choruses, with the pedal steel to the fore and percussion providing a musical joy that is a counterpoint to lyrical content.

"It’s a fine day, a familiar feeling

A fine day to let her go

Outside it’s a beautiful evening

A fine day to let her go"

That cover picture that earlier seemed so joyful, might now be referring back to this part of the song where maybe it's more a resigned face of disbelief that Hannah is wearing.

The harsh realities of being mistreated really hit home on the bridge

"Curtains fall on memories too broken to repair

With distances more comfortable than sleep

Feelings too delicate to keep

Who does that anyway?"

before Hannah starts the final runs at the chorus, with the overall sound stripped back, leaving just an emotional vocal for the opening two lines, before the band has one last hurrah.

It is all but two slivers of what promises to be a most thought provoking, musically diverse, and highly entertaining release - would you expect anything less?

Hannah White’s latest album ‘Fine Day’, set for release on Friday 19th September 2025

Album Launch at The 100 Club 19th Sept https://www.the100club.co.uk/clubevents/hannah-white-sept-25/