Diana Krall - Live In Paris (2002)

Diana Krall has always been underrated as a pianist. I've always loved her playing more than her singing, and that's saying a lot.

On Live In Paris, a twelve song album with eleven tracks recorded in concert at the Paris Olympia in November and December 2001 Krall is fully utilizing both of her superlative talents.

Krall's band includes outstanding guitar work from Anthony Wilson with John Clayton on bass and Jeff Hamilton on drums. They're accompanied by Orchestre Symphonique European conducted by Alan Broadbent on "Let's Fall In Love" and "I've Got You Under My Skin."

This concert mostly features straight-ahead, mainstream jazz and ballads from the Great American Songbook plus a couple of newer tunes.  

Krall gets to show off her piano chops by churning up a great groove on "East Of The Sun (And West Of The Moon)" and "Devil May Care," proving that she can hang with the best jazzmen on the planet.

The live encore is just the star singing and playing her piano on a cover of Joni Mitchell's "A Case Of You."

On the final track, a studio cover of Billy Joel's "Just The Way You Are" - the second of two songs on this disc from the 1970s - Krall strips away the original pop influences attached to Joel's love song and turns it into a small group jazz masterpiece with Michael Brecker taking the sax solo.

Comments

Post a Comment

WHAT'S HOT TODAY!

Slower Than Slow: 16 RPM Records

Image
Have you ever heard of a long forgotten vinyl format, the 16 2/3 RPM record? They were half the speed of the 33 1/3 RPM albums that were the traditional standard for recorded music. Most record players in the 1950s and 1960s came with a speed setting to play these long forgotten discs that were considered novelties even during the years they were available. Because most, but not all, 16s had big holes and were 7" in diameter many of them were mistaken for 45 RPMs and at that size the speed allowed for up to 20 minutes of playing time per side. However, there was no true standard size and they were also manufactured to be 9, 10, or 12 inches in diameter and these larger records played even longer. Just like the other speeds and formats 16s could be played one record at a time or stacked on a changer for continuous play. Radio stations often used the discs for pre-recorded radio shows containing interviews, dramas, and documentaries. More frequent
Read more

Why Do 45 RPM Records Have Big Holes?

Image
Today we're going to find out why 45 RPM records have much larger holes than 78s and 33s. Believe it or not I often wondered about this burning question when I was collecting hundreds of these little seven inch gems back the 1960s. According to several websites, including Answerbag , the reason for the large hole used by 45s was simple. It was difficult for the old 78s, with their smaller holes, to find their way onto jukebox spindles. The large hole effectively eliminated that problem. Strangely, seven inch 45s were often pressed with the smaller holes used for LPs in many countries outside the United States, especially in the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand. Overseas the inserts (commonly know as spiders) were manufactured into the large holes at the factories but they could be punched out if desired. The Beatles' British single of "Love Me Do," pictured here, is a typical example. Why were the spiders built into English 45s? I was unable to fi
Read more

The Beach Boys - California Dreamin' (1986)

Image
In 1986 The Beach Boys recorded a great cover version of The Mamas and The Papas' "California Dreamin" twenty years after their outstanding original became a huge hit. The Beach Boys' single rocks more than the Mamas and The Papas' first chartbuster and features Roger McGuinn on 12-string guitar, the instrument the former Byrd made famous with his own band. The Boys' single never became the classic the 1966 hit was but it's almost as good, proving a great song will succeed under any circumstances. Carl Wilson and Alan Jardine starred on lead vocals and the rest of the group added their always superlative harmonies. "California Dreamin'" peaked at # 8 on the Adult Contemporary chart but only reached #57 on Billboard's Hot 100 even though it was a thousand times better than the #1, Grammy nominated, "Kokomo," the hall-of-famers' last hit two years later. The track was produced by Terry Melcher. There are a couple of t
Read more

Chicago: An Album By Album Analysis Of The Terry Kath Era (1969 - 1977)

Image
The original lineup of Chicago has always been one of my all time favorite bands. My affection for this great horn band is such that I want to discuss all of the albums they recorded before Terry Kath's unfortunate and accidental passing. Their debut album is now forty years old, and it's followup is not far behind, yet their music endures to this day. * * * * * Everyone Must Own * * * * Excellent * * * Good * * Fair * Poor * * * * * Chicago Transit Authority (1969) - Whether they were playing screaming psychedelic hard rock, jazz, blues, or love songs, everyone in the band proved they were worthy of the huge mass success that followed CTA 's release. The band's ability to play anything and play it well is the hallmark of their debut album. The stars are Robert Lamm, Terry Kath, and the horns, and even Peter Cetera demonstrates he can be a rock and roll animal when he wants to be. The standout tracks are Lamm's "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It
Read more