Category: Jazz vocal

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Andy Bey – Ballads, Blues, and Bey (1996)

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Andy Bey – Ballads, Blues & Bey
1996 Evidence – ECD 22162-2

Except for a little-heard 1991 album released only in Croatia, this was Andy Bey’s first release since the classic rare groove masterwork ‘Experience & Judgement’ in 1974. As such – and because I still haven’t heard that 1991 album — I consider this record the first salvo in Bey’s “third act”.

He’d begun his recording career with his sisters in classy, upbeat, swinging and bop-leaning vocal jazz. Then in the late 60s and 70s, he can be found on all sounds of heady albums by the likes of Horace Silver, Gary Bartz, Stanley Clarke, and some others. And here he is in the 90s, coming back in a stripped down setting of just his amazing voice and more-than-adequate piano playing.This may sound like a back-handed compliment about his piano playing, but that’s not my intent.  I don’t feel qualified to give a detailed opinion about solo piano in general.  His playing is lyrics and un-fussy, and seems to be going for a subdued, Bill Evans type vibe which suits the music very well.  He does some cool stuff with harmony, but my lack of formal music education limits my analysis about that.  Really, though, his incredible skills and emotive range as a vocalist is why I listen to Andy Bey.

One could say that this is perfect stuff for a Sunday afternoon or a nightcap when you just need to settle down, but for me this music doesn’t stay in the background, because at some point you just want to stop and give him your undivided attention. I mean, he stretches out “You’d Be So Nice To Come Home To” to 8 minutes, and I hardly notice the time pass.  That’s saying quite a lot for somebody just accompanying themselves on the ivories. At least in the idiom of popular music, which historian Eric Hobsbawm argued was the true nature of jazz and how it came to prominence.

Bey would start to work with jazz combos again soon after this, and those albums are great too, but this intimate affair is a great way to either discover Bey for the first time or to reacquaint yourself with him.

Tracklist
1. Someone To Watch Over Me (06:19)
2. You’d Be So Nice To Come Home To (08:08)
3. I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart (07:39)
4. In A Sentimental Mood (07:03)
5. Willow Weep For Me (06:46)
6. Yesterdays (07:40)
7. If You Could See Me Now (06:16)
8. I’m Just A Lucky So And So (05:21)
9. Day Dream (07:19)
10. Embraceable You (06:33)

Total length: 01:09:04

More information: https://www.discogs.com/release/4271786-Andy-Bey-Ballads-Blues-Bey-

Recorded on May 19 & 20, 1995 at Carl Seltzer Studios, NYC

Vocals, Piano – Andy Bey

Executive-Producer – Cornelius Pitts, Jerry Gordon
Producer – Herb Jordan

Manufactured By – KAO Optical Products
Copyright © – Evidence Music, Inc.

Engineer: Carl Seltzer
Photography: Stephanie Badini
Art Direction: Rothacker Advertising & Design

Barcode (Text): 7 30182 21622 6
Barcode (Scanned): 730182216226
Matrix / Runout: MANUFACTURED BY KAO ***AP0051008-03* ECD22162
Mastering SID Code: IFPI L955
Mould SID Code: IFPI 3G22

 

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Nina Simone – Nina Simone’s Finest Hour (2000)

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Nina Simone – Nina Simone’s Finest Hour
2000 Verve Records (314 543 604-2)

I thought I would make a quick blog post to commemorate International Women’s Day and pay tribute to one of my heroes, the great Nina Simone.  Superlatively gifted and inspired as both a pianist and vocalist, courageous and visionary, groundbreaking, tenacious, mercurial — I could keep throwing adjectives at this woman all day and never run out of them.  Is this collection her “finest hour”?  Continue reading

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Al Jarreau – Glow (1976)

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Al Jarreau – Glow
1976 Reprise MS2248
This reissue, late-80’s German CD pressing

There has been another round of recent deaths of talented people in the arts, and I might be tempted to print another list here or to work up a bunch of “tribute” posts on this blog.  But my last post here was a bit ‘heavy’ and I thought I would change things up again for something more upbeat and life-affirming.  If you are the kind of person who sees the tag “vocal jazz” and are about to skip this post, please reconsider.  Many of the best jazz vocalists use their instrument to compliment an ensemble rather than dominate it, and the early Al Jarreau records fall into that camp.  Anyone who only knows Jarreau from his slicker, pop-oriented records from the 1980’s might even be taken aback but just how extremely funky his earlier work could be, yet he was always attuned to popular but soulful melodies that were ripe for improvisational riffing.  Continue reading

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Abbey Lincoln – A Turtle’s Dream (1995)

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The great Abbey Lincoln has been slated for some attention on this blog for years. At various points I have had one or another record from her early career lined up in the proverbial queue and yet they somehow missed the train.  I’ve had a bit of melancholy and existential blues lately and her music is just the right thing for it.  The title track in particular may become my new anthem. The album also features a cover of “Nature Boy” (meh) followed immediately by the Leo Ferré song “Avec Le Temps” (well, that was a pleasant surprise).  Charlie Haden holds down the bass on most of the cuts except for two tracks featuring Christian McBride and the recently-departed Roy Hargrove, who really gets to shine on “Storywise.”

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