City Travel Guides
Home Page > Go back a page
Music : River - The Joni Letters
Search Music - select a category
See Larger Image |
River - The Joni Letters by: Herbie Hancock List Price: CDN$ 14.99 City Travel Guides Price: CDN$ 11.99 You Save: CDN$3.00 (20%)Prices subject to change. |
|
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Binding: Audio CD EAN: 0602517448261 Label: Universal Music Group Manufacturer: Universal Music Group Number Of Discs: 1 Publisher: Universal Music Group Release Date: September 25, 2007 Studio: Universal Music Group Sales Rank: 478 MPN: 000979102 Disc 1:
Related Items:      see moreBrowse for similar items by category:
Editorial Review: From Amazon.com: On paper, River sounds like a match made in several versions of heaven. Legendary pianist Herbie Hancock re-imagines Joni Mitchell with his hand-picked, star-studded band--including saxophonist Wayne Shorter--in tow. Luminary guests lend vocals to a song apiece: Norah Jones ("Court and Spark"), Tina Turner ("Edith and the Kingpin"), Corinne Bailey Rae ("River"), Luciana Souza ("Amelia"), Leonard Cohen (with an unsettlingly sanguine version of "The Jungle Line"), even Mitchell herself ("Tea Leaf Prophecy"). In the event, though, a few fundamental elements go awry. Hancock plays with almost saccharine understatement throughout, and even Shorter's seminal "Nefertiti" and Duke Ellington's "Solitude" fall into the album's presiding, somnolent surface, though to a lesser degree does the instrumental version of Mitchell's "Sweet Bird." But girding, and in some measure, saving, the proceedings, the lyrics here testify to a subtler wisdom guiding Hancock's set list. The mix includes a continuum from intrepid classics to dusty, fans-only fare, but a distinct reverence for Joni Mitchell the Poet threads them together, and, in the end, this album works best as a sleepy window into one fan's giddy and particular love affair with his source material. Fans of Hancock win out. --Jason Kirk Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
 Rating:  - Outstanding!This is an outstanding recording, completely deserving of the "Best Album" Grammy that it won in 2008. It's unprecedented for a jazz recording to get that honor, and a huge accomplishment for Hancock and his stellar cast. Each of the contributors brings something a little different. To my ear, Corinne Bailey Rae's take on River, a much covered song, is definitive and perfect, and is my favorite. Contributions by Joni herself, Tina Turner, Norah Jones and all the others seldom miss a beat. Instrumentally, this is a jazz album (and not in the jazz-lite world of Norah Jones and her ilk), and probably will be difficult for many accustomed to the pop environment to appreciate at first. It's spare at times, and at others ... Read More: Rating:  - Not up to expectationsThe instrumental versions on this CD all sound just a little too much alike for my taste. They seemed to all run together, unceasingly slow and rather wandering. The songs featuring vocalists just didn't live up to the original version or give me enough of a new interpretation to allow them to stand on their own. I took a look at all the artists involved and thought it was going to be at least good, if not truly great but, honestly, it left me cold. WITH THE EXCEPTION of Tina Turner on "Edith and the Kingpin." As other people have pointed out, this song might make it worth the purchase. Tina Turner's voice is often missed in the flurry of excitement about her ballistic energy, her innate heat, blasting blues and pop and, of course, ... Read More: Rating:  - Tina Turner's track worth buying this cd forThis cd was not what I expected to hear from Herbie Hancock or Joni Mitchell but it is an interesting collaboration. I bought it without reading the liner notes and was blown away to discover that my favorite track is sung by one of my favorite singers, Tina Turner. This style is perfect for her at this stage of her career. I hope she pursues more work in this genre. I could have easily done without Norah Jones, but nothing new there, not a fan of hers at all. This is a good cd to keep in the car, it won't rile you up or distract you but it will keep you company on your journey. Rating:  - Great songsI'm looking forward to hearing HH's take on A Case of You and Sonya Kitchell's vocal on All I Want. Oh right, those are only available on the amazon.com version of this CD. At a lower price. This isn't funny anymore. Rating: - I was disappointed with this CD BUT!!!!!!I was at first very disappointed with his CD. I didn't like certain portions of it. But after listening to it a few times, it grew on me. It was not what I expected but I can honestly say that I now appreciate it and I like it. I have learnt that a first impression is not always the correct one. |
|