Formerly of Reading and nearby Bernville, PA-born Priscilla Ahn took her musical dreams with her and flew to Los Angeles, CA to pursue them. The result was A Good Day - a first album full of optimistic folk and country-influenced fingerstyle guitar set behind delicate vocal melodies. After stints touring with the likes of Ingrid Michaelson and Joshua Radin, as well as recording with local favorite, Amos Lee, Ahn's debut has been hotly anticipated by many.

For fans of those mentioned above, Ahn's album (in stores today) delivers. She adds her own twists, of course, such as the lyrical motifs of dreaming, soaring through the air, and the general insecurities of being shy and awkward. Priscilla's delivery is both dreamy and airborne, though, and far from awkward. Ahn has one foot planted in the current era of folk, with another firmly stuck in the 1960s. Her cover of Willie Nelson's “Opportunity to Cry” is a fitting choice to go with her original material.

The tales of ambition and ambition failed on A Good Day will be inspirational to young adults and adolescents, while serving as a reminder to older fans of their once youthful ideals. “Red Cape” tells of a Superwoman gone awry: “I've got a long red cape / That's caught in the engine of a plane / That's flying way too low.” “Wallflower” talks about a budding friendship or romance between two socially awkward people, and, like most of the material on the album, it seems honest and autobiographical.

This is a mellow record, to be certain, but not a depressing one. You can feel the warmth in Priscilla's voice and in the guitar, bells, ukelele, and violins that cover A Good Day's 11 tracks. Humor and slide guitar color the assertive “I Don't Think So,” while “Lullaby” reassures both the listener and Ahn herself that their “time will come to fly.” It's an uplifting and comforting experience.

Oftentimes, in today's musical climes, production is an obsession. After all, hit producers are as in demand as hit musicians anymore. In this state of affairs, many records wind up sounding inorganic and overproduced. Pricilla Ahn's debut, while sometimes deeply layered – as on the dreamy “Astronaut” - does not suffer from Overly Zealous Producers' syndrome. The path from Ahn's songwriting quarters to your ears is a short one; the result is an uncommonly intimate sounding record.

If this volume of output is any indication of this young singer's career to come, then she will be brightening many lives – along with the school of talents she's been touring alongside – for many years to come. Already, Ahn has gained measures of success. In addition to the live circuit appearances [no tour has yet been announced to support her debut], Priscilla's songs have appeared on Grey's Anatomy and, sure enough, they'll be playing in coffee houses and dorm rooms across the country. With the wealth of performers in Ahn's not clearly defined genre emerging every day, it's difficult to tell how far this album will go. What is clear is that this is a fine batch of well crafted songs, beautifully sung and performed by a woman with talent to spare.

4 cheap shots out of 5 for Priscilla Ahn's first LP.
Stand Out Tracks:
"Wallflower"
"Dream"
"Red Cape"

Visit Priscilla Ahn on Myspace.