The Jazz Singers

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Singing begot jazz. Sure, that's a vast oversimplification, but there's probably no better way to say it. The voice as the foundation and essential instrument of jazz's evolution is expansively presented in this five-CD box set compiled by Robert O'Meally, biographer of Billie Holiday. His goal, he writes in an accompanying 100-page booklet, is to show the sweep and the development of jazz singing in all its permutations, including blues, bebop, and scat, from the greatest figures--Bessie Smith, Holiday, Sarah Vaughn, Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, Jon Hendricks-to smaller or newer gems like Mildred Bailey and Cassandra Wilson. O'Meally has also endeavored to represent styles related to or dependent on jazz voicings, so the likes of soulful Marvin Gaye and June Christy are also represented. This set handily orients listeners and entices even more exploration. --Peter Monaghan --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

Vibe
The Jazz Singers may not be quite what you expected or hoped it to be--no Peggy Lee, Tony Bennett, Al Jarreau, or Dianne Reeves--but it will damn well rock your lil' world. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

The Jazz Singers

The Jazz Singers, Music, Various Artists, Ballads, Bop, Classic Female Blues, Classic Jazz, Jazz, Jazz Blues, Jazz Music, Pop, Standards, Swing, Traditional Pop, Vocal, Vocal Jazz, Vocalese

Draw Breath
Average customer rating:

Charting a course between David Torn and John Scofield

Nels is on fire in 2007

Draw Breath
Nels Cline Singers
Manufacturer: Cryptogramophone
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Avant Garde & Free Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music
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Downpour

Prezens

Asmodeus: The Book of Angels, Vol. 7

Time and Time Again

New Monastery

ASIN: B000QEILII
Release Date: 2007-06-26

Tracks:

Caved-In Heart Blues
Attempted
Confection
An Evening At Pops'
The Angel Of Angels
Recognize I
Mixed Message
Recognize II
Squirrel Of God

Album Description

Recently named a "Guitar God" by Rolling Stone Magazine, Nels Cline - lead guitarist of Wilco - has worked with everyone from Julius Hemphill and Charlie Haden, to Thurston Moore and Mike Watt. Nels follows his critically acclaimed CD New Monastery with Draw Breath, a new release by his long-standing trio The Nels Cline Singers. Glenn Kotche, drummer of Wilco is a featured special guest. Nels is currently touring the US with Wilco in support of their new CD.

Customer Reviews:

Charting a course between David Torn and John Scofield.......2007-07-16

Nels cline and his team present an adventuresome and compelling disc of avant jazz. That he creates what edge there is to Wilco should surprise no one. That band is milquetoast without him. Here on his own, he pushes the sonic possibilities of the guitar without loosing either the swing or the blues that are the bedrock to jazz. This is a terrific collection of tunes that will have you hitting the repeat button all the way through. By now, you obviously know that there are no "singers" except the instruments them selves and drums and double bass conspire in ways that would remind you of Michael Jerome and Danny Thompson with Richard Thompson. High praise indeed and well earned. I would recommend this disc wholeheartedly to anyone who loves guitar music from Paco Pena to Julian Bream to Derek Bailey and back again. This is a superb player, a creative writer and this disc is a revelation for those who might know him only from Wilco. While his day job with Tweedy is of the highest calibre, at night, on his own, he is quite something other altogether, to wit this disc and his take on John Coltrane's INTERSTELLAR SPACE.

Nels is on fire in 2007.......2007-06-29

Normally I wouldn't write a review a few days after an album is released. I think I have more of a handle on how I feel about a cd after I've had it for a while. This though (the 3rd album by the Nels Cline Singers) grabbed me on day 1 and will not let go. It needs a review now. You should buy this.

I don't know what you thought of the first 2. I thought Instrumentals was okay but with some moments of greatness. I'm still disappointed with The Giant Pin. It doesn't do it for me. It's always felt flat and uninspired. Draw Breath though, WOW! This is the album I've always hoped the Singers would make. This isn't just "my favorite Singers album" when taken in comparison to the 2 previous albums I just said I'm not overly into. This is one of Nels' best albums so far. If someone wants to know why I love him, this album is the newest prime example as to why. I've listened to this 10 times in 3 days and am trying to think of a way to wrap this review so I can go crank it again.

This is heavy duty. Sometimes peaceful (but not in a dry, polite, chamber-jazz way), but oftentimes capable of ripping heads off, Nels & Friends (but yes Nels first & foremost) are brilliant here! Cryptogramophone should be handing out sheets of LSD with this album. This is totally ripping, space-warrior material here.

I'm only putting out 4 stars because it's only been a few days since I got it. Plus, I gave Downpour 4 stars and I don't know that I should give this more stars. Both albums are fantastic. I guess I hog-tied myself by only giving Downpour 4. It certainly has major 5-star passages, as does this album. Old fan, newer fan, just heard of Nels for the first time yesterday? This should blow us all away. Many, many times. If Duo Milano (Nels & Elliott Sharp) turns out to be as massive as Draw Breath and Downpour, 2007 may go down as Nels' best year ever, in terms of albums.

Average customer rating:

Average
Sophie Milman (GREAT)
Knock Out Debut
The Differences Between Sophie and Diana
Great debut

Sophie Milman
Sophie Milman
Manufacturer: Koch Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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What Love Is
Yours
Introducing Robin McKelle
Easy To Love
No More Blues

ASIN: B000637XN8
Release Date: 2004-11-30

Tracks:

Agua De Beber
I Cant Give You Anything But Love
Guilty
My Baby Just Cares For Me
Back Home To Me
The Man I Love
Lonely In New York
I Feel Pretty
La Vie En Rose
My Heart Belongs To Daddy
Ochi Cherney (Dark Eyes)
This Time Of The Year

Album Description

Sophie Milman's debut self-titled CD is a collection of Jazz standards and contemporary new compositions that together showcase the maturity and originality of this young Jazz singer, skillfully produced by Canadian Jazz patriarch Bill King, and Danny Greenspoon, and features some of the best Canadian jazz players in the business.

Album Details

Sophie Milman's Debut Self-titled CD is a Collection of Jazz Standards and Contemporary New Compositions that Together Showcase the Maturity and Originality of the Young Jazz Singer, Skillfully Produced by Canadian Jazz Patriarch Bill King, and Danny Greenspoon, and features Some of the Best Canadian Jazz Players in the Business.

Customer Reviews:

Average.......2007-02-21

Average Singer with below average arrangements on often sung standards.
I was expecting at least some re-harmonization on these tunes but very much
straight from the fakebook kind changes. The horn lines were not too exciting.
Well....overall, very clean and straight.

Sophie Milman (GREAT).......2006-07-29

I just received the new "linus" Sophie Milman CD and have been playing it over and over again.

The visualization of a fantastic playful jazz angel on the other side of such a beautiful voice is not hurt by the reality that she is one. Her harmonic rythmic voice makes the heart happy just to listen to it and entertains the mind with frequent smooth variations that make other overcomplicated musicians just seem dull and nervous. She also has a great bunch of excellent jazz musicians that accompany her and they echo the mood perfectly. Great job Sophie Milman and "LINUS"!

Knock Out Debut.......2006-07-23

An ultra hip, swinging song stylist; and this time I'm not talking about Mark Murphy. Sophie Milman is a revelation, by way of Russia, Israel, and Canada. She sings the hell out of a song here. Want proof? Check out "My Baby Just Cares For Me." "I Feel Pretty," and "My Heart Belongs to Daddy." For a great change of pace, there's "La Vie en Rose" in French and "Dark Eyes" in Russian. Want more? The band includes some exceptional talent, and is a perfect fit for Milman. This is a great cd by a beautiful, brilliant young singer.

The Differences Between Sophie and Diana.......2006-07-16

When this c.d. hit American release, it came with a lot of hype. "The Next Diana Krall" was the proclamation. Perhaps because of the hype, this is one of the top jazz c.d.'s on I-Tunes, and has been so for awhile.

It didn't take me long to get past the hype. Sophie Milman, like Diana Krall, is an attractive blonde singer who sings standards in a jazzy style. And like Ms. Krall, she calls Canada home (although Ms. Milman was born in the U.S.S.R., and emigrated to Canada by way of Israel as a teenager).

There the similarities end. Actually, Ms. Milman has a rounder, fuller singing voice than Ms. Krall, although Sophie does have a tendency to scoop and croon a lot. But she also has a tight, tremelo vibrato which comes out when she's singing a loud note in her chest voice, and I like it.

But here's the thing: when Mme. Krall hit the scene 10 years ago, there weren't that many attractive standard-singing young jazz chanteusses. She came along at the right time. Now, the scene is saturated with them.

And as a result, if that's how you're making your mark, you have to do something to distinguish yourself from the rest of the pack. For example, you could mix some killer songs of your own with the standards. (e.g., Rene Marie, Jackie Allen or Erin Bode) Or, you could mix a fair number of well-done European art songs with the standards. (e.g., Ilona Knopfler, Jackie Ryan or fellow countryman, Madeleine Peyroux). Or, you could mix in some nods to more current fare, so as to gain the interest of baby-boomers and gen-x'ers. (e.g., Karrin Allyson, Lizz Wright, Janis Siegel or Lea DeLaria). Or, you could become proficient on an instrument in addition to voice (e.g., Ms. Krall, Dena DeRose, Patricia Barber, or Luciana Souza).

Or, you could do the standards in truly unique ways never attempted before. (e.g., Tierney Sutton, Cheryl Bentyne or Cassandra Wilson--back when Ms. Wilson did standards, that is.) These standards are pretty standard. In fact, outside of the jazzy read of "I Feel Pretty" and the "Goldfingerish" variations on "My Heart Belongs to Daddy," there's nothing here that especially piques my interest.

It seems that most jazz singers start with an album of standards. The really talented ones figure out where to grow from there. All of the above-mentioned singers have grown since their beginnings. Hopefully, that will be true of Sophie Milman as well. RC

Great debut.......2006-03-30

Heard this CD online and immediately ran out to get it. Sophie Milman has a sophistication and depth to her voice that belies her age. While she evokes the spirit of the great jazz singers of the '40s and '50s, she has a fresh approach to the old songs and a contemporary sound for the more modern cuts. Her voice has a rich, satisfying quality that will only get better with age. She has done her homework on the great smoky-jazz singers of the '50s, capturing the quality of those singers while bringing her own style to her singing.

She even makes the three least interesting songs--"I Feel Pretty," "Ochi Cherney," and "This Time of the Year"--listenable with her easy-swinging style. The band is great and provides smooth accompaniment.

I look forward to her future releases.

Average customer rating:

My favorite CD for jazz standards
Blankets of Nostalgic Bliss
Soft . . . Soulful . . . Sighing . . . or Sad .
So So Sirens
Listen once and you're hooked

Sirens of Song: Classic Torch Singers
Various Artists
Manufacturer: Rhino / Wea
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Torch Songs
Great Ladies of Jazz
Great Ladies Sing the Blues
Torch Songs
Lady Sings the Blues

ASIN: B0000033V0
Release Date: 1997-04-01

Tracks:

Cry Me A River - Julie London
Black Coffee - Sarah Vaughan
Stormy Blues - Billie Holiday
I'm Getting Sentimental Over You - Ella Fitzgerald
But Not For Me - Judy Garland
Stormy Weather - Lena Horne
Come Rain Or Come Shine - Marlene Dietrich
Smoke Gets In Your Eyes - Eartha Kitt
La Vie En Rose (Sung In English) - Edith Piaf
At Last - Etta James
Since I Fell For You - Nina Simone
What A Difference A Day Makes - Dinah Washington
I Got It Bad And That Ain't Good - Carmen McRae
Soul On Fire - LaVern Baker
I'll Wait For You - Ruth Brown

Customer Reviews:

My favorite CD for jazz standards.......2006-05-19

I absolutely love this CD. I've had it for years and never get bored of it. Not only are they terrific songs, they are wonderful performances by the great vocalists of that time. I really enjoy buying jazz cds with various artists because I can sample new artists. After buying this CD I went on to buy music by Julie London, Eartha Kitt, and the list goes on. Great standards and great performance - the way these songs should be sung! Cry Me a River and Black Coffee - my favorites!

By the way, there's one review that describes this cd as man-bashing. I don't get that feeling when I listen to the CD. To me, it's fantastic love songs - and sometimes love is sad or unfair, or really great - and that's all there is to it.

Blankets of Nostalgic Bliss.......2005-10-22

Can you hear the soothing rawness of the needle landing on the vinyl? Can you smell the rich ruby lip rouge seducing the sound stage? Can you see the swaying sirens blessed with longing lungs and forelorn hearts? Here you have Edith Piaf and Etta James, the songs Cry Me a River and Smoke Gets In Your Eyes. This collection sealed my arrival to true womanhood and music lover land. Listening to these ladies, true Torch Singers, I felt transported back to the hallways of my parents' high schools and my grandparents' parlour rooms. The biographical writings contained in the CD jacket makes for good reading as a luxe bonus. I've had this tremendous collections for years now but all that currently remains is the gorgeous CD cover, so I'm putting a freshly sealed copy in my shopping cart, as should you. Bought during a strange Eartha Kitt fixation, this CD offers a wealth of long satisfying listening pleasures. Run a bath on a rainy day or take a stroll through a fresh snowfall. Whatever ambient escape you desire, this auric interlude will warm you with blankets of nostalgic bliss.

Soft . . . Soulful . . . Sighing . . . or Sad ........2004-02-21

This review relates to the musical CD, "Sirens of Song:
Classic Torch Singers." Rhino: R2 72514. 1997.
The atmosphere, locale, and tone of these songs
and presentations is close, soft, intimate, jazzy blue,
and easily accessible.
The songs and singers are: "Cry Me A River", Julie
London; "Black Coffee", Sarah Vaughan; "Stormy
Blues", Billie Holiday; "I'm Getting Sentimental Over
You", Ella Fitzgerald; "But Not For Me", Judy Garland;
"Stormy Weather", Lena Horne; "Come Rain or Come Shine",
Marlene Dietrich; "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes", Eartha Kitt;
"La Vie En Rose" (in English), Edith Piaf; "At Last";
Etta James; "Since I Fell For You", Nina Simone; "What A
Difference A Day Makes", Dinah Washington; "I Got It Bad
And That Ain't Good", Carmen McRae; "Soul On Fire",
LaVern Baker; "I'll Wait For You", Ruth Brown.
What really fascinates and pleases on this disc are
the distinctive tonalities, stylings, and intimate
involvement with the songs which each of these ladies
presents. As each voice comes on with its own song
of love-lorn experience and "wisdom" gained, it is
instantly recognizable as belonging to the particular
lady who sings it. There is pathos in these songs,
but scarely any pitiful whining. And, strangely,
although the subject matter is about sadness and
loss, the presentations are soft and soulful, very
restful and in a way, comforting. That's the way
of the world -- it happens to us all -- life is
not just laughter and blase glitz, it's also
cold experience and pain, but at some point there
has to be soulful, restful assessment and release.
For me, the slight irritation in some of the orchestrations,
is the "intrusion" of the jazzy, muted trumpets as if
inserting a bit of razzing worldly smart-aleck
comment. The other possible irritation for some
may be the inclusion of Marlene Dietrich among these
stylish ladies of song -- hers seems more like a
"campy" inclusion, with even a talking portion in
the song.
The personal standouts for me are Billie Holiday,
Ella Fitzgerald (stylish sophistication personified),
Eartha Kitt, Edith Piaf, Etta James, Dinah Washington
(what a special sound her voice has!), Carmen McRae
(another special sound).
The booklet included has excellent photographs of
Billie Holiday, Dinah Washington, Ella Fitzgerald,
Judy Garland, Julie London, Eartha Kitt, Marlene
Dietrich, Etta James, and LaVern Baker.
The purpose is: "The lives of the women who pour their
hearts out on -Sirens of Song: Classic Torch Singers-
read like a litany of heartache, hardship, seesaws of
rejection and adoration, and deaths that came too soon.
Emotion and upheaval make for 'good torch.' Technically,
a torch song is about unrequited love. Here we have
broadened the definition to include all aspects of
love -- good, bad, and uncontrollable -- for that
special, or ultimately not-so-special someone." --
Norma Campbell Edwards. "Happy" listening.
-----------------------------
-- Robert Kilgore.

So So Sirens.......2004-02-15

I appreciate good jazz vocals; but, these are just ok jazz vocals, with big name singers. I guess I had expected the songs to be cleaned up a bit - you know digitally perfect. While there are a lot of wonderful songs here, by most of the original performers, that does not make them the best versions of the songs. Unfortunately the feel of the songs gradually goes from lounge jazz (good) to early Doo-whop (just ok). Still, if you're in the mood for some historic / nostalgic performances by the first first ladies of music, there is a place in your collection for this disk. I personally enjoyed Judy Garland's: But Not For Me.

The one other thing about the CD I didn't care for was the marketing technique used. It is an honorable thing to support shelters for battered women; however, it is not necessary to employ subtle, emotional male-bashing in the liner notes. Our two genders will never achieve equality, if they can't treat each other with respect and consideration.

Listen once and you're hooked.......2004-01-23

I used to work part-time at Tower Records. Every day when you work at Tower, you get to play a CD sometime during the course of your shift. Whenever I played this CD, customers would flock up to the front counter wanting to know what it was and where in the store they could find it (the first time the copy I was playing was the only copy in the store -- the first customer who asked me for it got to buy it right off the CD player and I had to special-order it for a bunch of other people). It got so popular in the store that the manager ordered a bunch and put the CD on one of the preview-play stations.

Average customer rating:

Choral work at it's finest.
Love it
Light and shadows
Cambridge Singers = Quality
American Gramaphone, please reissue this title.

Brother Sun, Sister Moon
Gregorian Chant , William Byrd , John Taverner , Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina , Samuel Scheidt , John Sheppard , Maurice Durufle , Robert White , Cambridge Singers , Gerald Finley , and John Rutter
Manufacturer: American Gramaphone
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Brother Sun, Sister Moon
Stillness And Sweet Harmony
Hail, Gladdening Light: Music of the English Church
Faire is the Heaven: Music of the English Church
Be Thou My Vision

ASIN: B0000005MF
Release Date: 1990-10-25

Tracks:

Music Of The Morning Rite: a. Alleluia - b. Haec Dies
Music Of The Morning Rite: Easter Sequence
Dum Transisset Sabbatum
Sanctus
Exsultate Deo
a. Easter Acclamations b. Surrexit Christus Hodie
Music Of The Evening Rite: Before The Ending Of The Day
Music Of The Evening Rite: In Pace
Music Of The Evening Rite: Into Thy Hands, O Lord
Music Of The Evening Rite: Ubi Caritas
Music Of The Evening Rite: Keep Me As The Apple Of An Eye And Nunc Dimittisa
Music Of The Evening Rite: O Christ, Who Art The Light And Day
Music Of The Evening Rite: a. We Will Lay Us Down In Peace b. Libera Nos, Salva Nos

Amazon.com

A brief glance at the packaging for this recording might make you think New Age, and indeed this label normally offers recordings in that vein. The disc's cover tells nothing about the music inside--all we see are the ruins of an ancient abbey, the moon in the sky on the front, the sun on the back. But wait. If you get far enough to listen to the recording, you'll find one of the most beautiful and beautifully programmed choral recordings in the catalog. The compositions, organized into the categories "Music of the Morning Rite" and "Music of the Evening Rite," are mostly from 16th- century composers--Byrd, Taverner, Sheppard, White--with a few Gregorian chants and a gorgeous rendition of the 20th-century motet by Duruflé, "Ubi caritas." Conductor/choral music legend John Rutter has assembled a program that's both uplifting and restful; the performance is faultless. One could only complain about the short (39 and a half minutes) playing time. --David Vernier

Customer Reviews:

Choral work at it's finest........2007-06-03

I really enjoyed this work. I was first introduced to this title through American Gramophone's website and was also my first introduction in the works of John Rutter and the Cambridge Singers. You do not have be religious to enjoy this work. I find the music uplifting and very sublime. I have listened to it many times, and I find that my favorite period to play it is in the morning hours. .

I have since purchased many other Rutter titles including "Images of Christ", and more recently "Lighten our Darkness"

Love it.......2007-05-02

13 years ago, I had the tape of brother sun, sister moon and as a teenager and I would play it every night as I slept, I loved it. I dont know what happened to it and I have ever sence been looking for it, and I just baught the CD and am so excited.

Light and shadows.......2003-07-29

Recorded in the Great Hall of University College School, London, the Cambridge Singers under the direction of John Rutter produced a true masterpiece in 'Brother Sun, Sister Moon' in 1988. The title derives from a famous prayer by St. Francis of Assisi, and is inspired by liturgical music from (or derivative of) the Middle Ages and Renaissance polyphony and Gregorian chant. The music is meditative, uplifting, and elegant in simplicity and stunning vocal quality.

--Brother Sun--
The first half of the disc is largely composed of pieces from the liturgical Morning Prayer cycle, concentrating on texts from Easter, the most important of Christian days. From the Alleluia to the Acclamations and Surrexit Christus Hodie (Christ is risen today), the flow from Gregorian Chant to compositions by Byrd, Taverner and Palestrina (giants of this type of music) in increasing energy and glory, as befits both a Morning service (time to wake up!) as well as a celebration of the resurrection of Christ. Perhaps of particular note here is the cantoring of bass Gerald Finley in the Easter Acclamations.

--Sister Moon--
The second half of the disc concentrates on music of the evening; in particular, the Compline service, a service of unwinding and sombre meditation with which monastic communities conclude their days of work and worship. Many churches have reincorporated Compline into a regular cycle of services; some have even done so as a result of exposure to this recording. The music here is softer and less energetic than that of Morning prayer. This includes music from Whyte and Sheppard (also masters of the Medieval-to-Renaissance liturgical polyphony) as well as a brilliant motet by twentieth century composer Duruflé for the Ubi Caritas.

--Liner Notes--
The notes for this recording include the titles and words, in both Latin and English, for each of the pieces recorded here. It has an excerpt from a prayer by St. Francis, and a basic introduction to the music relating it historically and liturgically. One thing conspicuously missing is any biographical information about John Rutter, or any descriptive information about the Cambridge Singers apart from the basic listing of singers.

--John Rutter--
Rutter was born in London and educated at Clare College, Cambridge. This was where his career as a composer, arranger and conductor began. His early work was with groups at King's College Chapel at Cambridge as well as the Bath Choir and Philharmonic Orchestra. He has worked for the BBC providing music for educational series such as 'The Archaeology of the Bible Lands', until in 1979 he began forming the Cambridge Singers, and has continued a remarkable career of performance and recording as their director ever since.

--The Cambridge Singers--
The Cambridge Singers are a mixed choir of voices, many of whom were members of choir of Rutter's college, Clare College, Cambridge. While they specialise in English and Latin liturgical pieces, they have a wide range of recordings that span from modern compositions (including a remarkable requiem by Rutter) to English folk songs of the Middle Ages. For this particular recording, the choir consisted of eleven sopranos, six altos, six tenors, and six basses.

Cambridge Singers = Quality.......2002-05-23

I do love this cd, but tend to play certain tracks as my first love is chant. I play the Victimae Paschali Laudes in the car and sing along - it is so very beautiful that this rendition of this Easter Chant is worth purchasing this cd alone. I love that one track so much, my only criticism of the cd is that I wish they'd centered the entire cd on chant - and I hope they will do one like that in the future because the quality of the voices is stunning.

American Gramaphone, please reissue this title........2000-03-30

I originally obtained this CD through Minnesota Public Radio. The first time I listened to the Ubi Caritus, I was moved to tears. The CD became my favorite to play at Christmas and other times. I gave the CD to a friend who has moved to Oregon, deeply regret that it is no longer in production.

Tracks:

Deep Peace (Choral Version)
Flow Gently, Sweet Afton
Piping Down The Valleys Wild
The Wandering Moon
O Earth, O Earth, Return
The Secret Forest
The Hills Of Glencar
Red Rose, Sad Rose
Return To Inishmore
The Voices Of Children
Evening Star
Irish Lullaby
Deep Peace (Reprise)

Product Description

1. Deep Peace - (choral version)
2. Flow Gently, Sweet Afton
3. Piping Down The Valleys Wild
4. Wandering Moon, The
5. O Earth, O Earth, Return
6. Secret Forest, The
7. Hills Of Glencar, The
8. Red Rose, Sad Rose
9. Return To Inishmore
10. Voices Of Children, The
11. Evening Star
12. Irish Lullaby
13. Deep Peace (Reprise)

Format: CD

Amazon.com

Bill Douglas--composer, pianist, and bassoonist--excels at sentimental, romantic music. Deep Peace, a collection of modern classical compositions both instrumental and choral, fits in snugly with the musician's rather prolific output of slightly cloying melody. Drawing on his jazz background, love of folk music, and lyrical language, Douglas finds inspiration in the poetry of William Butler Yeats, Robert Burns, William Blake, and Alfred Graves. The Ars Nova Singers, a Boulder, Colorado, choral group, function here as on Douglas's Earth Prayer as another instrument used to relate the largesse of sound as worship, celebration, and tender feeling. Traditional, skilled, and dynamic, the Singers are well suited to the composer's majestic orchestral canvas. This baker's dozen--lively, reverent, and overall sweetly harmonious--is sandwiched between two versions of the title cut, a traditional Gaelic blessing, effectively setting the blissful tone for these Celtic-tinged pieces of the whole. --Paige La Grone

Customer Reviews:

Deep Peace.......2007-04-10

I first heard this CD in a Pilates class and couldn't concentrate on the exercises because I was so caught up in the music, particularly the track, "Flow Gently Sweet Afton". The women's harmonies are breathtaking. It is truly a "Peaceful" CD.

Music Therapy.......2006-11-22

I purchased this CD during the lowest time of my life emotionally. Every track brought solace and comfort beyond belief, especially the title track, Deep Peace. I would listen to it over and over, bathing in the lush healing sounds. Each element, from the perfectly balanced vocals to the simple piano and violin motifs, is seemingly structured at a spiritual level. This is more than ambient music, it's true music therapy.

Deep Peace ~~ Bill Douglas.......Superb!.......2005-08-03

Talk about heaven! This CD is divine. Just perfect for that needed relaxation on a daily basis. The jacket insert has the words to the songs, which is nice as I like to memorize the words -- makes the meaning of the songs come together nicely. Spiritually moving. I've recommended this CD to family and friends.

Not classical.......2005-04-26

The Amazon reviewer seems to think this is "modern classical" music, which only proves how much the term "classical" has been cheapened. This CD is full of pretty, easy-listening tunes, none of which have a thing to do with classical music. Spa music personified, but anyone expecting a more serious level of music will be disappointed. Very well produced and recorded though.

More than music.......2004-09-26

"I love poetry almost as much as music, and it is particularly satisfying for me to present these musical settings of some of my favorite poems. For me, these poems express the utmost tenderness, purity, joy, and poignancy." Bill Douglas

Has music ever overtaken you so that it became more than music? It was like your spirit entered its essence? Like it spoke to your soul on a level you cannot fully express with human words, yet your heart burns to share it? DEEP PEACE does that for me. I truly believe DEEP PEACE is inspired and approved by a Higher Power. I hope you will buy this and experience it for yourself. Until then, I leave you with some lyrics from the first song, my favorite, DEEP PEACE:

"Deep peace of the running wave to you / Deep Peace of the flowing air to you / Deep Peace of the quiet earth to you / Deep Peace of the shining stars to you / Deep Peace of the gentle night to you / Moon and stars pour their healing light on you / Deep Peace to you."
--a Gaelic Blessing o8E

Soar!

Average customer rating:

A remarkable voice.
Great 40's voice
Ol' Black Magic
Ella would be proud...
Nostalgic and sensational

Introducing Robin McKelle
Robin McKelle
Manufacturer: Cheap Lullaby
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Jazz | Styles | Music

Smooth Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

General | Adult Contemporary | Pop | Styles | Music
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Sophie Milman
Yours
What Love Is
Good Night, And Good Luck
Footprints

ASIN: B000EWKLIA
Release Date: 2006-05-02

Tracks:

Something's Gotta Give
Bei Mir Bist Du Schon
Night & Day
For All We Know
You Brought A New Kind Of Love
Dream
Yes, My Darling Daughter
Deep In A Dream
I've Got The World On A String
Come Rain Or Come Shine
The Lamp Is Low
On The Sunny Side Of The Street

Product Description

12-track CD on Cheap Lullaby Records, 2006. Tracks are: Something's Gotta Give/Bei Mir Bist Du Shon/Night & Day/For All We Know/You Brought A New Kind Of Love/Dream/Yes, My Darling Daughter/Deep In A Dream/I've Got The World On A String/Come Rain Or Come Shine/The Lamp Is Low/On The Sunny Side Of The Street

Amazon.com

Robin McKelle is being promoted as a '40s-style jazz singer, but though she does pluck tunes from the era on this enjoyable debut, her full-frontal approach is steeped in the brassy big band sounds of the late '50s and early '60s. A bicoastal stylist who draws equally from the lilting jazz purity of Ella Fitzgerald and the pop pizzazz of Barbra Streisand, she is a refreshing departure from all those female jazz singers currently vying for attention with coy understatement or an overreliance on technique. Introducing Robin McKelle was produced by Willie Murillo, previously an arranger for Brian Setzer and Aimee Mann, who is responsible for an unlikely arrangement of "Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen" that morphs from moody chamber piece into full-fledged Latin treatment. The album's other highlights include a lovely, understated rendition of "For All We Know," a winning duet with Robbie Wycoff on Sammy Fain's "You Brought a New Kind of Love," and a slam-bang treatment of "Come Rain or Come Shine." Throughout, McKelle luxuriates in her love of the music without overdoing the nostalgia. A third-place finisher in the 2004 Thelonious Monk Vocal Jazz Competition, she scores here by avoiding predictability without trying to. --Lloyd Sachs

Customer Reviews:

A remarkable voice........2007-07-09

INTRODUCING, Robin McKelle's debut album, is already a best seller in the USA and Europe. Critics compare her voice to Sarah Vaughan and Ella Fitzgerald.
Produced by Willie Murillo (Brian Setzer Orchestra producer, Aimee Mann, LeAnn Rimes) the album announces the arrival of a song interpreter without equal. Be prepared. It's a remarkable voice; a soul-infused alto tinged with haunting echoes of the postwar jazz greats and now its possessor has inched closer to her inevitable destiny in the spotlight.
It's rare to find a vocalist mining the Forties big band seam who really makes you sit up and take notice. New Yorker McKelle has a rich alto, packed with sass and phrasing reminiscent of Sarah Vaughan: she's the real deal.
'The Forties: I was born to be in that time, I swear...' is singer Robin McKelle's comment on the nostalgic atmosphere that permeates her debut recording, and there are indeed numerous musical reminders of the swing-band singer's heyday throughout this immediately appealing album.
McKelle's voice is most obviously inspired by Ella Fitzgerald: first and foremost, what you hear is the song, impeccably presented, faultlessly sung, occasionally tastefully embellished, but never over-interpreted or used merely as a springboard either for vocal gymnastics or the display of personal emotion.
This is not to suggest that McKelle is not affecting her strings-backed 'For All We Know', for instance, is suitably touching but simply that her clear priority is to showcase what she calls 'these wonderful love stories between men and women'.
Versatile enough to infuse the likes of 'Bei Mir Bist Du Schon' or 'I've Got the World on a String' with appropriate pep, float tastefully over the Basie-like chug of, say, 'The Lamp is Low', or go for broke on the album's opener, 'Something's Gotta Give', McKelle does a great job of setting out her stall on Introducing...; refreshingly free from the apparently obligatory contemporary 'classic' and concentrating entirely on the standard's golden age, this album is unashamedly directed at those who like their classic songs respectfully addressed, their settings punchy but unshowily informal.

Great 40's voice.......2007-05-12

She sounds great singing songs of this era but the sound mix guy messed up and let the instruments overpower the vocals.

Ol' Black Magic.......2007-05-10

There is plenty of magic, black or otherwise when Robin McKelle sings. Her voice is deep and smoky much like Keely Smith, but with just a bit more animation. If you need to decompress just let the music flow over you or crank the volume and dance around the house, but to really enjoy the flavors and nuance you have to turn out the lights, put out some candles or light a fire and let Robin sing you to another place and time. She can take you back to the days of swing and make you look over your shoulder to see if the cops are coming or transport you to Times Square when it wasn't on the square. Robin makes all of this time traveling easy with a smooth turn of phrase and a soft rendering of standards that makes them anything but old.

Anyone can sing standards, that's why they are standards, but to weave moonlight and magic it takes style and skill. No easy task for an old timer but for a spring chick? Easy if you are Robin McKelle.

If you are thinking of buying a CD then do the right thing, skip the A's, skip through to M and when you do open it before you get in the car, there's a CD player in there and if you drive slow and leave the window open somebody might hear and thank you.

Ella would be proud..........2007-01-22

Hey Robin is young and she has got it! Her voice is ageless and I can't wait to see wht else she comes out with down the line. It's not easy living up to legends and she does just fine. My favorite tracks so far...Night and Day...I've Got the World on a String. The arrangements and orchestrations are enthusiastic. Buy the CD and enjoy her silky voice. Don't listen to me or anyone else. Listen for yourself.

Nostalgic and sensational.......2007-01-16

This is one of the best among young jazz vocalists that I have heard thus far. Don't miss it

Average customer rating:

Quality performance, but CD too short
Delightful and Amazing....

Keyboard Classics
Swingle Singers
Manufacturer: Primarily Acapella
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Jazz | Styles | Music

Vocal Jazz General | Vocal Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music

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The Swingle Singers - Bach Hits Back ~ A Capella Amadeus
Swingle Singers
Mood Swings
Christmastime
Jazz Sebastian Bach, Vol. 1

ASIN: B000063DG0
Release Date: 2002-03-26

Tracks:

Estro Harmonico, Op.3, No.II: Fugue
The Well Tempered Clavier Book I: C Major Praeludium
The Well Tempered Clavier Book II: Prelude In F Minor
Suite Bergamasque: Clair De Lune
Piano Sonata Op.27, No.2: Moonlight Sonata
Harpsicord Concerto In F Minor: Largo
Children's Coner: Golliwog's Cake Walk
BWV 782 In G Minor: Three-Part Invention
Op.28, No.4 In E Minor: Prelude
Gymnopedie No.1
The Art Of Fugue: Fugue In D Minor
Piano Sonata In A Major: Rondo Alla Turca
Op.25, No.9 In D Flat Major: Etude
Harpsicord Suite In E Major: 'Harmonious Blacksmith' Variations
BWV 578: Fugue In E Minor
Hungarian Dance No.5

Customer Reviews:

Quality performance, but CD too short.......2007-02-06

Briefly - the performances are great. Entertaining, nice arrangements, spot on performances. Everything the other reviewer mentioned is accurate.

However, quite dissapointingly, the CD is under 45 minutes in length, clocking in exactly at 44 minutes, 51 seconds. Yet, the CD is full price. With 80 minute CDs, and a typical CD of decent value running on average 60 minutes, getting a 45 minute CD is unfortunate.

A nice CD to listen to, interesting to own, but it's excellent quality is diminished by it's short length, making it less valuable for the money.

Delightful and Amazing...........2002-10-30

This must be one of the TOP Swingle Singers CDs out there: excellent vocal sound, great pieces, and hilarious parodies all come together to make this a heck of a fun ROMP to listen to.

For anyone unfamiliar with Swingle Singer's- they are a jazz vocal group from the '60s that always used to do warm ups and exercises singing bach fugues intended for keyboards. This requires the most intense focus of pitch for a singer, and incredible vocal gymnastics. They realized that singing these "Exercises" was just as profitable as their jazz, and here we are today with unique discs of instrumental classics arranged for 8 voices.

This compilation is as fun as any- the sound more homogeneous than the earlier recordings, this one might be a bit easier to listen to. I personally love the selection: classics such as Mozart's "Turkish March" and Brahms' "Hungarian Dance No. 5" are sung with beautiful precision, and later wacky or jazzy humor- and yet the listener is entirely convinced that the character that the composer intended for the piece hasn't been tampered with TOO much, merely ELABORATED on, and to very delighting extent. Other favorites on this dics are Golliwog's Cake Walk, Clair de Lune, and Moonlight Sonata.

Again, this disc is VERY enjoyable, yet for those of you who may be purists, and are skeptical of the tampering of composer's intentions: FEAR NOT- The swingle singers are sensitive musicians who create an entertaining piece out of classics without killing the oringinal idea (ex: moonlight sonata, clair de lune). You may even enjoy an new approach to these often played pieces.

Tracks:

Both Sides Now
London By Night
Here, There And Everywhere
Lullaby
Michelle
The Fool On The Hill
Emily
Since You've Asked
More I Can Not Wish You
Try To Remember
Clair
Killing Me Softly With His Song
Yesterday
My Romance
Lost In The Stars
April In Paris

Tracks:

Girl Talk
Nature Boy
I Don't Know Where I Stand
Autumn In New York
Like Someone In Love
Indian Summer
Anything Goes
The Way We Were
One More Time, Chuck Corea
Sweet Lorraine
Jeanie With The Light Brown Hair
Someone To Light Up My Life
Love Is Here To Stay
The Entertainer
All The Things You Are
Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child
I Wish You Love

Album Details

A Capella Group Singing is an Art that Separates the Vocal Masters from the Second-rate. With No Bass Player to Anchor the Pitch and No Drummer to Control the Rhythm, the Singers Need to have the Strictest Musical Virtues: Faultless Intonation and Time, a Harmonic Sense to Equal Any Orchestral Section Player, the Ability to Subordinate the Self to an Ensemble that Thinks and Hears as One. Few Groups, If Any, have Taken the Art of a Capella to Such Dizzying Heights as the Singers Unlimited. Between 1970 and 1980, this Quartet of American Jingle and Studio Singers Recorded Fifteen LPs in Germany. Their Three a Capella Albums, Gathered in this Set, Are Milestones of their Kind: A Wedding of Extraordinary Vocal Technique and Studio Technology that Could Never Be Replicated Live. Four Voices Became a Symphony of Overdubbed Lines, with So Many Intricacies of Harmony, Rhythm, and Dynamics that Only a Musician Could Pinpoint all the Subtleties.

Customer Reviews:

Great Listening.......2007-05-12

Since the 1970's, when the Singers Unlimited recorded with Oscar Peterson, I have loved this group. The A Capella numbers on this 2 disc album are great for background music, but they rate better as foreground listening. Highly recommended.

Average customer rating:

New Christy Minstrels make Elevator music on LSD!
An unusual Beatles tribute album

Ticket to Ride: A Beatles Tribute
Swingle Singers
Manufacturer: Primarily Acapella
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Vocal Jazz General | Vocal Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music

General | Broadway & Vocalists | Styles | Music

Traditional & Vocal Pop | Pop | Indie Music | Stores | Music
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Keyboard Classics
The Swingle Singers - Bach Hits Back ~ A Capella Amadeus
Mood Swings
Sing Irving Berlin
Christmastime

ASIN: B000063DFY
Release Date: 2002-03-26

Tracks:

Ticket To Ride
Penny Lane
Revolution
Day Tripper
Norwegian Wood
Birthday
Lady Madonna
Yesterday
Strawberry Fields Forever
Drive My Car
Blackbird/I Will
When I'm Sixty Four
The Fool On The Hill
All My Loving
I Am The Walrus
Goodnight

Customer Reviews:

New Christy Minstrels make Elevator music on LSD!.......2005-09-28

Perhaps the strangest album ever recorded next to Lou Reed's machine metal music (2 vinyl discs of amplifier feedback).

The singers harmonize as well as the 5th Dimension, the Association, or Peter, Paul and Mary but the results are anything but delicious. I mean how can you make a song like Revolution or I am the Walrus ... full of gut-wrenching emotion into something with no feeling whatsoever (other than nausia)? Well, take a listen ... these guys did it!

An unusual Beatles tribute album.......2003-01-26

I love the Beatles and their music, but I always felt that the songs were what set them apart from other groups. The diversity of tribute albums, crossing just about every genre of music, reinforces that belief. I sometimes broaden my musical horizons via Beatles tribute albums - it is a good way of trying something new which still has a base of familiarity. And so it was that I selected this CD. The first time I played it, I wasn't sure, but on the second play, I loved it.

Despite the inclusion of Yesterday, the songs are generally not the most frequently covered - Penny Lane, Revolution, Day tripper, Lady Madonna, Strawberry fields forever, Drive my car and I am the walrus are all well known, but how often do you come across covers of these songs?

The Swingle singers are made up of four men (two tenors, two bass) and four ladies (two sopranos, two altos). Their roots lie in jazz and classical music, but their a cappella style is very much their own. Classifying music is often difficult, but I wouldn't even begin to classify this. It's not the kind of music I would listen to very often, but it is one of those CD's that I choose from when I want something different to listen to.

The Giant Pin
Average customer rating:

Creative guitar playing

The Dangerous Guitarist?

Attention Wilco fans: hear what you've been missing ...

The Giant Pin
Nels Cline Singers
Manufacturer: Cryptogramophone
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Avant Garde & Free Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music
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ASIN: B0002IJ8YO
Release Date: 2004-10-26

Tracks:

Blues, Two
Fly Fly
He Still Carries a Torch For Her
The Ballad of Devin Hoff
The Friar
Something About David H.
Bright Moon
A Boy Needs A Door
Square King
Spell
Watch Over Us

Album Description

Nels Cline is the new guitarist for the band Wilco. After several years of touring the U.S. and Europe honing their sound, The Nels Cline Singers present their second recording entitled, "The Giant Pin." While the core group consists of electric guitar, acoustic bass and drums, (no singers), there are some notable guest artists on this recording; including keyboardist Jon Brion and vocalist Greg Saunier of Deerhoof. This is a mature work from the leader that Jazz Times has called, "The World's Most Dangerous Guitarist."

Customer Reviews:

Creative guitar playing.......2005-08-14

I was introduced to Nels Cline by his playing on Mike Watt's "Contemplating the Engine Room". I picked "Giant Pin" up unheard, and was immediately pleased, though not getting it in places. I've gotten some of the more spacey/ambient songs since then. Since that's still not my cup of brew, the album loses a star from me.

Otherwise, the rest is excellent. The opener is a classic jazz-guitar piece, and that's it for classic jazz guitar. Some of the songs are rock-oriented, some are free-jazz-oriented, and then there's the spacey songs.

If you're interested in good, off-the-wall guitar (the bass & drums which round out the trio are very good too), this is a good one to pick up.

The Dangerous Guitarist?.......2005-06-22

In a job where I need to keep listening to new music and different CDs, it's hard for me to take the time to listen to many albums again. Those albums are a special breed, the ones I know it takes repeated listens to discover the depth of the music.

This is just that kind of an album.

While classified as a jazz guitarist, Nels' greatest fame is coming from his work in the rock world. The Giant Pin won't disappoint either type of listener. Songs build and change and take you on a journey. His strong melodic sense means that even in some of the most driving guitar parts, there is still a wonderful melodic core.

I highly recommend this album to listeners interesting in something a bit out of the norm and with appreciation for one the great guitar talents of our time.

Attention Wilco fans: hear what you've been missing ..........2004-10-27

Recently recruited by Wilco, avant garde jazz guitarist Nels Cline continues the documentation of his own work by delivering this second outing from his instrumental trio, the ironically titled - The Nels Cline Singers. Mining territory as wide ranging as ambient free form ballads to tightly structured rock based song forms, it's easy to see why Jeff Tweedy wanted him in the band. One listen to "The Giant Pin" however, and one is likely to ask why Sonic Youth didn't ask for him first.

No stranger to the indie rock world, Cline has been a collaborator with such luminaries as Mike Watt, Thurston Moore and Carla Bozulich. Therefore, rock structured pieces like "Fly Fly" and "Square King" tread fearlessly and knowingly into frenzied Sonic Youth-esque territory while others like "Watch Over Us" trade feedback and squall for delicacy and gentleness. Slow building cuts like "He Still Carries a Torch For Her" exemplify the trio's varied aesthetic. Building gradually from a somber melodic figure to layers of epic distortion and feedback, the trio pulls off what is ostensibly an electric free-jazz power ballad. Imagine Godspeed You! Black Emperor with jazz improvisation and you'd be in the proverbial ballpark.

Indie rock fans looking for an easy entrance to the contemporary creative jazz world couldn't ask for a finer album to open that door. Previous converts to Nels Cline's brand of sonic mayhem will be delighted with this installment of his current trio's output.

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