Regina Belle - Lazy Afternoon
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Free Music Notes for Lazy Afternoon
Free Music Review: Fantastic voice
Hit: 4 Stars
What's to say about Regina Belle? Her rich and controlled voice is perfect for jazz/blues. Lazy Afternoon is something I play while driving or doing housework, and the CD is something of which I never tire. Very relaxing, funny at times, great lyrics and one of the best voices in the world.Free Music Review: Regina: a showstopper with star power !
Hit: 5 Stars
When Regina Belle sings, she's like a historian. In her phrasings one can hear the struggles of generations of black singers who used the sheer, powerful force of vocal styling to tell their stories.
Compared with other contemporary singers, her voice reveals real strength of character. She may not have the biggest voice or hold the longest notes, but her sound really resonates in a room. It calls up the spirits of black musicianship. And when Regina gets the spirit, the spirit gets you. Or,as she admits, people believe her.
We all know this Lady from her numerous hits and especially the Grammy awarded tune " A Whole New World " back in 1993. If you loved those songs then you will not be disappointed with her latest offering.
The vibe of the album is laid back, sun-drenched with jazzy flavours and unapologetically adult-oriented.
Regina's vocals are fantastic and are also captivating in that they are sexy, smooth, luxuriant and relaxed in a magnificently warm amalgam. For instance, check out the opening song, the ESSENTIAL "Lazy Afternoon". Every time I get into this sexy groove I hear Billie Holiday's influences, Nina Simone's depth, Sarah Vaughan's sensibilities, Julie London's barely restrained eroticism betwixt the groove and Nancy Wilson's sensitivity in delivery. Oh yes, this is what I want to hear!!!
"Lazy Afternoon" is a gorgeous floater that will have lovers reaching for the repeat button. We do not hear tracks of this quality much nowadays, dear readers, and the fact that there are but 12 songs on offer here should not put you off at all.
Here in this world it is the quality that counts and there's more of that in the first two tracks that anywhere else, let alone the rest of the CD!!!
The aforementioned "Lazy Afternoon" lopes along with its warm , sensual, jaunty stride and has echoes of Sarah Vaughan within its make-up. I'm thinking more of the sensitive arrangements and chord changes that are cleverly and neatly understated.
When I heard "Why Do People Fall In Love" I could imagine Anita Baker attempting this type of ballad. I especially like the fresh, live feel of the recording . This song is woefully short for my liking - a sure-fire indicator that I love it very much and cannot get enough of it. Luckily the beautiful "If I Ruled The World" has similar traits and although does not rise to such dizzy heights has much to keep you gripped...(please, just to understand how a song should be interpreted,check the latest Tony Bennett's "An American Classic : Duets" album and the same song sung by Tony and Celine Dion -- ) !! Can you hear, can you feel the difference ?
More impressive still is the excellent "If I Should Lose You" with only George Duke on acoustic piano.
It really is lovely to have real singing and real instruments in the studio. Slinky, hearbreakingly emotional - a dream of a track! Enough said.
Throughout the whole album, the backing, heavenly vocals by the Perri Sisters in support are sublime.
"The Man I Love" and "Try A Little Tenderness" are the jazziest offerings and a smart, cool way to drop the curtain on what has been one of THE jazz albums of 2005 and beyond...so far.
Please do not overlook this album. Hopefully we will receive more jazz gems like this from Regina Belle in the coming years.
Love Forever Shines
Like a Fire
Lay It Down
Free Music Review: Good product
Hit: 5 Stars
I am very satisfied with the purchase that I made from Amazon. The product arrived as described. I would continue to shop Amazon and telling my friends to do the same.Free Music Review: One you can't get out of your head.
Hit: 5 Stars
With "Lazy Afternoon" Regina Belle has undoubtedly done just that - recording an album drenched with soul, brimming with life, full of sensuality and great grooves.
It's also a highly personal recording - as the set of songs reveals. It's a tribute acknowledging her major influences and inspirations (favourite songs and artists who sung the tracks before her). It's as close an insight into where the artist is right now as you're likely to get.
She exudes a real depth of personality and musical substance that separates her from her influences or comparisons.
She is also blessed with a spellbinding and soulful voice that draws you in like a siren's call.
Elevated and enhanced by some excellent arrangements that incorporate soul and jazz, she has an earthy yet sophisticated quality that is beautifully displayed.
The best moments are the most simple - "If I Should Lose You" - with a fantastic, unmatched George Duke on piano - employs a stripped-bare up-close microphone technique that creates an ambiance that's almost uncomfortably intimate; the a cappella "For The Love Of You" - with sublime vocal harmonies from the Perri sisters - builds on a deliciously breezy, summery atmosphere.
Take a listen to the album and I guarantee you'll be left astonished at just what this artist has turned in. In short, there's barely a trace of the Regina Belle that most people came to know several years back when she was considered one of the world's Pop/R&B upstarts...Check the albums All by Myself, Stay with Me and Passion.
Whether it's the bossanova groove that defines the gloriously sultry "Corcovado", or the jazz tones that underpin "The Man I Love" or even the undeniable allure of "Why Do People Fall In Love" (a song that moves like a slow dance through contemporary jazz), Regina is s capable of extending her musical gaze just about anywhere.
At turns soulful, at others jazzy, with this album Ms. belle has placed herself firmly alongside the world's greatest songstylists - and unquestionably has what it takes to occupy a spot on the global stage.
Love Forever Shines
Free Music Review: aahhhh, all that and more....
Hit: 5 Stars
Cannot put into words the sultry sounds of vocal and jazz. Ms Regina will make you want to curl up into a warm blanket in front of a crackling fireplace. This CD is a keeper.