Diana Krall - The Girl In The Other Room
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Free Music Notes for The Girl In The Other Room
Free Music Review: Jazz Should Be This Good
Hit: 5 Stars
My introduction to the music of jazz vocalist and pianist Diana Krall came with her 2002 CD, Live In Paris. Like most contemporary quasi-popular jazz, it covered classics, but the performance had a youthful vigor and virtuosity that blew the dust off the chestnuts.
The Girl In The Other Room contains some covers too, but these are from the likes of Joni Mitchell, Tom Waits, Mose Allison, and Krall's new husband, Elvis Costello. The remaining selections are original collaborations between her and Costello. Some jazz aficionados have turned up their noses. Let them go. From the instant Krall's left hand begins its first stroll until the terminal foghorn-like chord of "Departure Bay" fades to thin air, The Girl In The Other Room is a masterpiece. A few more records like this one may yet give jazz a future to match its past.
When Krall sings, I want a man to rock me / like my backbone was his own, in the Chris Smither classic, "Love Me Like A Man", she might as well have been speaking of what her piano does to time in these renditions. She makes it moan, snaps its eyes open again, again, and-a gain, only to close them again with new ecstasies.
Her vocal style is an equally delightful blend of playfulness and mastery. Ella Fitzgerald or k.d. lang might be able to explain all she's doing. But the way Krall massages pitch, her swoops, growls, meditations, and the use of hard "r" sounds is enough to endear her to an ordinary listener like me.
The Krall and Costello original songs hold their own admirably amongst the fine company of cover selections. I've never been a big fan of Costello's music, but his lyrical assistance here resulted in passages such as, I ran my hands down silent keys / For secrets like these / And ever since / They turn up on my fingerprints. Writers drool, secretly or otherwise, over lines like these.
To cap it off, the sound recording is first rate.
This isn't classical jazz or goodtime party music. But, give it half a chance, and The Girl In The Other Room may sweep you into the future too.
Free Music Review: Don't Dismiss a Different Diana!
Hit: 5 Stars
My review title is a little misleading, as I feel Diana isn't really so different with 'The Girl in the Other Room'. But so many people think she is. What this album truly is (to me, anyway) is a natural progression in Diana's evolution as a musician.I can partially understand the scathing negativity spewed by certain reviewers here. After all, so many great musicians - upon moving outside the narrow confines of a genre that seemed to define them - often find themselves abandoned by short-sighted fans who insist the artiste remain a sort of human jukebox. Think Joni Mitchell, as a grand example.
'The Girl in the Other Room', in my opinionated opinion, is a tremendous breakthrough for Krall. Those who stupidly think she's not 'jazz' anymore probably got confused along the way with beautiful and poignant tracks like 'Narrow Daylight' and 'Departure Bay'. Comparisons to Norah Jones are not only laughable; they're insulting.
Just listen to 'Love Me Like a Man'. Listen to 'Stop This World'. Listen to her spot-on cover of 'Black Crow' - if you're even that much of a learned music expert to know it's from Joni Mitchell's legendary album Hejira.
If this review comes over sounding defensive, it is because I am.
It is frustrating to see that so many people are ready to trash this album without truly giving it a thorough listen.
Okay, so it's not 'All For You'. It's not the strings-laden 'The Look of Love'. GET OVER IT. Diana will not be pigeon-holed. There's only so many of those revered standards one can record before it gets old.
Let the girl make some NEW music for a change, and learn to enjoy the ride she takes you on. I guarantee if you listen to 'The Girl in the Other Room' with open ears and an open mind (instead of expecting the same old thing) you will find a new appreciation for Diana's talent.
Free Music Review: A Brilliant Departure
Hit: 5 Stars
Although in many ways this is dramatically different from Diana's earlier albums, it's remarkable how natural and comfortable she sounds here, as if she had always recorded in this style. There is great range in the songs she sings on this record, from lust to loss, from Love Me Like a Man to Departure Bay. Her version of Almost Blue, I think, will make this song into the modern standard it deserves to be. The songs she wrote with Elvis Costello are deeply touching, very personal, revealing Diana to be a gifted melodist and confirming Elvis's skill as a lyricist. These songs are reminiscent of the 1970s singer-songwriter period, calling to mind Joni Mitchell (whose Black Crow Diana does a moving and spirited version of) and, especially on Narrow Daylight, Jackson Brown. Yet the songs are Diana's own, and, though they are rich in personal detail and recollection, they nonetheless have a universal feel. They speak to our need to cling to detailed memory when personal loss leaves us nothing else. And while most of the songs deal in one way or another with loss or world weariness, they aren't self-pitying or morose.It's great to hear Diana's piano once again at the forefront, and her accompanists are without exception excellent. Anyone who doubts that this is a jazz album either hasn't listened carefully or has too narrow a conception of what jazz is. (Take my word for it, it swings.) And the Amazon reviewer who thought that the album was monotonous--an album as varied as this...? I don't know what album that reviewer was listening to. I can't believe he was listening to the same one I was.
Free Music Review: A Brilliant Departure
Hit: 5 Stars
Although in many ways this is dramatically different from Diana's earlier albums, it's remarkable how natural and comfortable she sounds here, as if she had always recorded in this style. There is great range in the songs she sings on this record, from lust to loss, from Love Me Like a Man to Departure Bay. Her version of Almost Blue, I think, will make this song into the modern standard it deserves to be. The songs she wrote with Elvis Costello are deeply touching, very personal, revealing Diana to be a gifted melodist and confirming Elvis's skill as a lyricist. These songs are reminiscent of the 1970s singer-songwriter period, calling to mind Joni Mitchell (whose Black Crow Diana does a moving and spirited version of) and, especially on Narrow Daylight, Jackson Brown. Yet the songs are Diana's own, and, though they are rich in personal detail and recollection, they nonetheless have a universal feel. They speak to our need to cling to detailed memory when personal loss leaves us nothing else. And while most of the songs deal in one way or another with loss or world weariness, they aren't self-pitying or morose.It's great to hear Diana's piano once again at the forefront, and her accompanists are without exception excellent. Anyone who doubts that this is a jazz album either hasn't listened carefully or has too narrow a conception of what jazz is. (Take my word for it, it swings.) And the Amazon reviewer who thought that the album was monotonous--an album as varied as this...? I don't know what album that reviewer was listening to. I can't believe he was listening to the same one I was.
Free Music Review: A refreshing album from Diana Krall
Hit: 5 Stars
I love this album; granted, it was not love at first sight: at first I wasn't sure what to think of Diana's deviation from the jazz standards she had us used to. After all, I love all of her previous albums (with exception perhaps of "The Look of Love", which I think is her weakest) and I always liked Diana's take on jazz, as well as her beautiful interpretations. When I first listened to this album I felt disoriented, but changed my mind the second time around.Her new album certainly takes a different direction, as Diana is not singing the usual jazz standards, but has chosen new material and added her own creations (in collaboration with husband Elvis Costello). The result, in my opinion, is a very refreshing album that is still 100% Diana Krall. Her voice is charged with emotion and beautiful as always. The arrangements are just right, not excessive (as in "The Look of Love") nor too bare.
Her choice of songs shows an artist that has range and doesn't stick to the established formula. I especially like "Temptation", "Stop This World" and "Black Crow" from among the covers. As for the songs written in collaboration with her husband, I love the album title track, "Narrow Daylight" and "Departure Bay".
In brief, I think Diana's "The Girl in the Other Room" is a beautiful piece of music that shows her growth as an artist. If you don't like to stick to formulaic music and loved her previous albums, give it a try. I know I did and am enjoying every minute of it.