Joe Sample, Lalah Hathaway - The Song Lives on

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Free Music Notes for The Song Lives on

Free Music Review: Who says they don't make 'em like they used to?
Hit: 5 Stars

The album only contains two standards in the traditional sense of the term, and they both shine: Peggy Lee's "Fever" is the sort of song that never grows old, and Lalah offers an appropriately steamy rendition that stands well next to the distinguished versions the song has had over the years. Then there's "For All We Know," a showcase that will leave no doubt that Ms. Hathaway was born to sing jazz. In fact, her work on the project is what carries the album from the realm of promising to the status of Listening Treasure...five years after her last solo project, hearing her smoky, one-of-a-kind voice return to a well-deserved spotlight is like opening a window after a long Winter and finding a warm, refreshing Spring.

Even the more recent compositions on the record possess the same classic jazz spirit as its classics; "Come Along With Me" and the Bossa Nova-flavored "One Day I'll Fly Away," for all their haunting melodies and touching lyrics, have the capacity for becoming modern standards. Also striking is a reworking of "Street Life," a classic in its own right from Sample's days with the Crusaders, here presented in a laid-back, jam-session form that can be only created by skilled and adventurous artists feeding off each other's best elements.

The instrumentals are a treat as well, the title track and the gently swinging "Living in Blue" being the best. The only possible complaint is the sequencing; "For All We Know" would have made a perfect album-closer, and it's a little frustrating to end with two instrumentals and have Lalah's charm and personality suddenly drop out of the tail end of the record. But such a protest is petty; in an era when music is overridden with trends and even jazz isn't safe from sell-outs, we owe Joe Sample and Lalah Hathaway a considerable debt for making sure that when it comes to jazz, the song lives on.

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