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UK Mall 1 - Somewhere
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List Price: £16.99
Our Price: £8.95
Your Save: £ ( % )
Availability: In stock soon. Order now to get in line. First come, first served.
Manufacturer: Blix Street
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Average Customer Rating:  
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Binding: Audio CD
EAN: 0739341019029
Label: Blix Street
Manufacturer: Blix Street
Number Of Discs: 1
Publisher: Blix Street
Release Date: 2008-08-25
Studio: Blix Street
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: I found it disappointing
Comment: I'm a longtime fan of Eva Cassidy's wonderful voice and style. I think I have all her albums and those albums provide a lot of the background music for my life. Her all-too-soon death took a marvelous talent from this world.
That said, though, I found this album a bit disappointing. I think that with every now-deceased beloved artist, there exists a file somewhere of recorded songs that were considered for earlier albums and put aside because they weren't quite good enough. Then, when the artist dies, there's a scramble to unearth these items and create an album from them. It doesn't always work: those songs were filed away for good reason.
And while I find this album enjoyable, that seems to be the case here. I don't find it nearly as good as her earlier offerings.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Music from the graveyard shift
Comment: 'The graveyard shift' in radio are those late late hours when all good folk are tucked up in bed and Alan Partridge-esque DJ-s are playing undemanding soulful muzak to factory shift workers and long distance lorry drivers.
Now Radio Norwich listeners whiling away the wee small hours can find a new selection of Eva Cassidy songs bulking out the tired and unimaginative playlists of their tired and unimaginative Djs.
Without wishing to be too unkind to the late Eva Cassidy who certainly had a fine voice and who recorded some half decent songs in her time. I will be unkind to her record company who appear to have a limitless supply of unreleased EC songs at their disposal. How many more sub local radio friendly songs are locked away in the archives I wonder ?
They are certainly exploiting the mother lode for all its worth! What a pity Eva herself is not here to oversee the apparent never ending release of sub standard material.
For die hard EC fans only.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Breathtaking...and then some!
Comment: I was introduced to Eva Cassidy in the late 90s and have purchased every CD of her work released since then. This new release caught me by surprise, discovering it in Amazon's New Releases section on the very day it was released. Boy am I glad I didn't miss it! Despite Live At Blues Alley being one of my all-time Top 10 albums, this is in great danger of becoming my favourite Eva album to date.
It is certainly better produced than previous works (not over-produced) with the luxury of Eva's own backing vocals now being added into the mix, along with retrospectively recorded instrumental parts. The light and shade of the album, therefore, shows greater disparity than ever before. Eva's cover of Dolly Parton's Coat of Many Colours is sung in her trademark mellifluous style, which, rather than wrenching out your heart and dancing on it in stilletto heels as Dolly does, simply bathes you in the love felt by the singer for her mother's kindness. My Love is Like a Red Red Rose and A Bold Young Farmer are drawn from the folk tradition that Eva seemed to have flowing through her veins. Both interpretations are without doubt the best performances of those songs I have ever heard. Her cover of Walkin' After Midnight is so different to the versions I know well (Patsy Cline and The Cowboy Junkies) that it took me a while to recognise - she brings a depth to the song I had not heard before.
Saving the best for last, though, the inclusion of the self-penned Somewhere as the album's closer is a masterstroke. I hope it is a hint of more of Eva's own songs lurking away on a shelf and destined for a future release. Somewhere is up there with her versions of Over The Rainbow, Fields of Gold and What a Wonderful World as an absolute masterclass in vocal performance. She moves from subtle-without-being-boring (eat your heart out Katie Melua) to storming into your ears and demanding your attention, without her voice ever losing its shape, its depth or its warmth (are you listening Christina, Mariah and the rest of the Wailers?). It's softly gospelly layered backing vocals, from Eva's own multitracked voice alone, support her stunning lead to passionate, triumphant effect. Even if you're not a fan of Eva, this last track alone will have you converted in an instant. It's not often you hear a genius at work, but this is one of those rare occasions. Buy it and revel in the glory of one of the best tracks ever recorded.
Customer Rating:
Summary: An American Master Crosses All Musical Boundaries
Comment: As a long time Eva Cassidy fan this album caught me off guard. It is not the smooth flowing series of ballads one would expect from this singer yet in many ways it just could be something better! The album is a direct response to recording companies who originally tried to limit Eva to one type of music. Eva had the ability to master Standards, Country, R&B and Folk and herein lies the proof.
Fans of Eva's cover of "Fields Of Gold" will be quick to internalize the heartbreak in "A Bold Young Farmer", sung with trademark vocals which attack the nervous system faster than any virus known to man. Another folk selection, "Red Red Rose", is a close second in this emotional breakdown category because it is sung more true to it's origin as a Burns poem than as a bold ballad. This rose is a true love letter sung as if written on parchment.
The award winning album, Live At Blues Alley, might have been even better had it included two songs from this new album. "Ain't Doin' Too Bad" retains her vocals from the historic Jan 3, 1996 appearance while also adding a new backing by original band members plus a horn section. If you ever wondered what Eva would have sounded like accompanied by the full complement of musicians she deserved this is the answer. Fans of the band will applaud the piano introduction by Lenny Williams, Keith Grimes's guitar solo and Raice McLeod's "made to order" drums. Chris Biondo, Eva's long time producer and band member (bass), is superb in his producing of this track.
Eva's country music fans will immediately notice the Dolly Parton song, "Coat Of Many Colors", and an americana version of Don Hecht's "Walkin' After Midnight". In both songs, Keith Grimes offers sublime support on guitar.
Eva sings without the safety net of her regular band in "Early One Morning". The album liner notes contain a photo of Eva's handwritten lyrics offering the first of two songs that indicate her skills progressed far beyond interpretation. Dobro and slide guitar work by Rob Cooper are perfect complements to Eva's vocals.
Reinventing American Popular Song Standards was one of Eva's most unusual skills. Those who applaud her treatment of Irving Berlin's "Cheek To Cheek" on the Blues Alley release will quickly agree that she has pulled another musical rabbit out of a tophat with her version of the Gershwins "Summertime". This take is one that sits so easily under a shade tree that you will spend hours trying to think of similar versions. Don't waste your energy. Eva's folk based interpretation is a true original.
Any discussion of Eva's potential as a songwriter is now closed with the addition of the recording's title song, "Somewhere". Co-written with Chris Biondo (music), Eva's lyrics are far from casual and suggest a longing for love that may also apply to her need to create music..."and I like an arrow straight for love I went again". Fans of Eva Cassidy will only understand her full creative force when they hear this song complete with her own multi-voice background vocals, dynamics that change within verse, and phrasing that always finds the maximum emotion. To borrow from the lyrics, "for a moment or for a lifetime" this is Eva Cassidy.
Customer Rating:
Summary: YAW DROPPING!
Comment: Is there nothing Eva Cassidy can't sing? I don't think I've heard such a complete vocal masterclass in one album before, simply breathtaking. Anyone into music will LOVE this album.
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Editorial Reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: I found it disappointing
Comment: I'm a longtime fan of Eva Cassidy's wonderful voice and style. I think I have all her albums and those albums provide a lot of the background music for my life. Her all-too-soon death took a marvelous talent from this world.
That said, though, I found this album a bit disappointing. I think that with every now-deceased beloved artist, there exists a file somewhere of recorded songs that were considered for earlier albums and put aside because they weren't quite good enough. Then, when the artist dies, there's a scramble to unearth these items and create an album from them. It doesn't always work: those songs were filed away for good reason.
And while I find this album enjoyable, that seems to be the case here. I don't find it nearly as good as her earlier offerings.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Music from the graveyard shift
Comment: 'The graveyard shift' in radio are those late late hours when all good folk are tucked up in bed and Alan Partridge-esque DJ-s are playing undemanding soulful muzak to factory shift workers and long distance lorry drivers.
Now Radio Norwich listeners whiling away the wee small hours can find a new selection of Eva Cassidy songs bulking out the tired and unimaginative playlists of their tired and unimaginative Djs.
Without wishing to be too unkind to the late Eva Cassidy who certainly had a fine voice and who recorded some half decent songs in her time. I will be unkind to her record company who appear to have a limitless supply of unreleased EC songs at their disposal. How many more sub local radio friendly songs are locked away in the archives I wonder ?
They are certainly exploiting the mother lode for all its worth! What a pity Eva herself is not here to oversee the apparent never ending release of sub standard material.
For die hard EC fans only.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Breathtaking...and then some!
Comment: I was introduced to Eva Cassidy in the late 90s and have purchased every CD of her work released since then. This new release caught me by surprise, discovering it in Amazon's New Releases section on the very day it was released. Boy am I glad I didn't miss it! Despite Live At Blues Alley being one of my all-time Top 10 albums, this is in great danger of becoming my favourite Eva album to date.
It is certainly better produced than previous works (not over-produced) with the luxury of Eva's own backing vocals now being added into the mix, along with retrospectively recorded instrumental parts. The light and shade of the album, therefore, shows greater disparity than ever before. Eva's cover of Dolly Parton's Coat of Many Colours is sung in her trademark mellifluous style, which, rather than wrenching out your heart and dancing on it in stilletto heels as Dolly does, simply bathes you in the love felt by the singer for her mother's kindness. My Love is Like a Red Red Rose and A Bold Young Farmer are drawn from the folk tradition that Eva seemed to have flowing through her veins. Both interpretations are without doubt the best performances of those songs I have ever heard. Her cover of Walkin' After Midnight is so different to the versions I know well (Patsy Cline and The Cowboy Junkies) that it took me a while to recognise - she brings a depth to the song I had not heard before.
Saving the best for last, though, the inclusion of the self-penned Somewhere as the album's closer is a masterstroke. I hope it is a hint of more of Eva's own songs lurking away on a shelf and destined for a future release. Somewhere is up there with her versions of Over The Rainbow, Fields of Gold and What a Wonderful World as an absolute masterclass in vocal performance. She moves from subtle-without-being-boring (eat your heart out Katie Melua) to storming into your ears and demanding your attention, without her voice ever losing its shape, its depth or its warmth (are you listening Christina, Mariah and the rest of the Wailers?). It's softly gospelly layered backing vocals, from Eva's own multitracked voice alone, support her stunning lead to passionate, triumphant effect. Even if you're not a fan of Eva, this last track alone will have you converted in an instant. It's not often you hear a genius at work, but this is one of those rare occasions. Buy it and revel in the glory of one of the best tracks ever recorded.
Customer Rating:
Summary: An American Master Crosses All Musical Boundaries
Comment: As a long time Eva Cassidy fan this album caught me off guard. It is not the smooth flowing series of ballads one would expect from this singer yet in many ways it just could be something better! The album is a direct response to recording companies who originally tried to limit Eva to one type of music. Eva had the ability to master Standards, Country, R&B and Folk and herein lies the proof.
Fans of Eva's cover of "Fields Of Gold" will be quick to internalize the heartbreak in "A Bold Young Farmer", sung with trademark vocals which attack the nervous system faster than any virus known to man. Another folk selection, "Red Red Rose", is a close second in this emotional breakdown category because it is sung more true to it's origin as a Burns poem than as a bold ballad. This rose is a true love letter sung as if written on parchment.
The award winning album, Live At Blues Alley, might have been even better had it included two songs from this new album. "Ain't Doin' Too Bad" retains her vocals from the historic Jan 3, 1996 appearance while also adding a new backing by original band members plus a horn section. If you ever wondered what Eva would have sounded like accompanied by the full complement of musicians she deserved this is the answer. Fans of the band will applaud the piano introduction by Lenny Williams, Keith Grimes's guitar solo and Raice McLeod's "made to order" drums. Chris Biondo, Eva's long time producer and band member (bass), is superb in his producing of this track.
Eva's country music fans will immediately notice the Dolly Parton song, "Coat Of Many Colors", and an americana version of Don Hecht's "Walkin' After Midnight". In both songs, Keith Grimes offers sublime support on guitar.
Eva sings without the safety net of her regular band in "Early One Morning". The album liner notes contain a photo of Eva's handwritten lyrics offering the first of two songs that indicate her skills progressed far beyond interpretation. Dobro and slide guitar work by Rob Cooper are perfect complements to Eva's vocals.
Reinventing American Popular Song Standards was one of Eva's most unusual skills. Those who applaud her treatment of Irving Berlin's "Cheek To Cheek" on the Blues Alley release will quickly agree that she has pulled another musical rabbit out of a tophat with her version of the Gershwins "Summertime". This take is one that sits so easily under a shade tree that you will spend hours trying to think of similar versions. Don't waste your energy. Eva's folk based interpretation is a true original.
Any discussion of Eva's potential as a songwriter is now closed with the addition of the recording's title song, "Somewhere". Co-written with Chris Biondo (music), Eva's lyrics are far from casual and suggest a longing for love that may also apply to her need to create music..."and I like an arrow straight for love I went again". Fans of Eva Cassidy will only understand her full creative force when they hear this song complete with her own multi-voice background vocals, dynamics that change within verse, and phrasing that always finds the maximum emotion. To borrow from the lyrics, "for a moment or for a lifetime" this is Eva Cassidy.
Customer Rating:
Summary: YAW DROPPING!
Comment: Is there nothing Eva Cassidy can't sing? I don't think I've heard such a complete vocal masterclass in one album before, simply breathtaking. Anyone into music will LOVE this album.
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