As a total sucker for a good female chanteuse, it's not surprising that I own both Cat Power's "The Greatest" and Dusty Springfield's "Dusty in Memphis". What is surprising is that I didn't notice the connection between the two records before. Both records feature their respective chanteuses backed by the Memphis Horns, which gives them both a very nice classic soul sound. Both records were mile-markers along the artists' personal journey - Dusty Springfied was trying to break with her image as a balladeer with her first record, and "The Greatest" was released after notoriously messy Cat Power frontwoman Chan Marshall had sobered up. Most importantly, both records feature a noted singer coming to Memphis to make a distinctly Memphis-sounding record that would later be considered a classic. "Dusty in Memphis" is  more innocent than "The Greatest". There are a few sexy songs (like "Son of a Preacher Man" and "Just a Little Love"), but the overall tone of the record is more sweet than sultry. It's like Dusty Springfield just can't seem to completely bury the adorable blonde balladeer in the horns. Cat Power is less of an innocent - the subject matter on "The Greatest" is quite a bit darker. There are songs about living in bars, kicking bad habits, struggling with self-loathing ("Hate") and heartache ("Where is My Love"). Memphian Harlan T. Bobo arranged the strings, and the backing band is a Who's Who of Memphis greats.  Chan Marshall also seemed to capture a bit more of the city in her record. It doesn't hurt that she made an excellent video for my favorite track, "Lived in Bars", at the Lamplighter. Though, according to the jacket text on "Dusty in Memphis", Dusty Springfield really enjoyed her time in the city. Here's some evidence: "Dusty may soon be returning to Memphis; she says the barbecue down there is 'really something'." Buy Dusty in Memphis and the Greatest at your favorite local record store or online at emusic, iTunes, or Amazon.