Nellie Mckay - Normal As Blueberry Pie: A Tribute to Doris Day
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Music CD Cover
Artist: Nellie MckayEdition: Music CD
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language)
CD Release Date: 2009-10-13
Music Label: Verve
Free Music Notes for Normal As Blueberry Pie: A Tribute to Doris Day
Free Music Review: "Gem" doesn't capture it
Hit: 5 Stars
I have spent some time with this album and now feel somewhat qualified to comment.
God this pains me, I am a 100% all-American male, so it's tough for me to use "foofie" little French terms, but the definition of "bijou" fits this record nicely: "a small, dainty, usually ornamental piece of delicate workmanship," or "something delicate, elegant, or highly prized."
Nellie brings us that eternal touch of delicacy, grace and elegance lost in most modern music, and especially - sadly - in modern takes on the classic jazz modes. She just "gets it."
Nellie's best by far is still "Get Away From Me" - a garrulous, madcap big-bang of long-brewed genius, in my opinion easily one of the very best records of the "00's". This would be her second best, in qualitative terms, to my mind and my taste.
It is rare for an artist to cover a song as good as or - even rarer - better than the original. For the "equals," "They Won't Go When I Go" by George Michael (covering Stevie Wonder), and for the "betters," "Nothing Compares 2 U" by Sinead O'Connor (making a silk purse out of Prince's plodding, lackluster original sow's-ear version) come to mind. Point is they breathed enough life into and wove enough of themselves throughout a given piece to hit or exceed the mark, which is super rare. Usually it's some starry eyed artist in love with a tune, feeling the reflexive need to spit it back out, when they don't realize their attraction and even obsession over it was due to it's already-there extreme high quality. And then they miss the mark. And I hate that.
This whole record is quite in that vein of improvement or high quality deviation from the original. This is an artist who can take the bones of material and weave her own beauty around them.
My exposure to standards is extensive; my exposure to Day is limited to like one record ("A Guy Is A Guy" being one stuck-in-my-head anti-highlight/minor guilty pleasure) and Pillow Talk. In other words, limited. But it's so cool to see a jazz geek getting geeked up about their niche fandom. Because I have one or two of those, too. Oh and Nellie is the hottest nerd alive. Mmmmm...hot nerds.
Finally, the feather-pillow beating in the liner notes regarding vegetarianism...it didn't work. ;) Sorry, the stuff is just too tasty.
- Matt Jackson
p.s. I can admit to being a serial music thief on torrent, but this is one record I never once considered not paying for. It's just too tailor made for my tastes, and I must encourage more records and artists like this one.
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