|
contents | jazz | |||||||||||||
| A New Day For Basia Although she didn't play Newport or London, multiplatinum chanteuse Basia delighted American audiences from coast to coast during a successful 20-city concert tour that concluded in Seattle last week (October 5) with a sold-out show in support of her newly released From Newport to London: Greatest Hits LiveAnd More album. The month-long trek that visited major U.S. cities also registered sell-outs in New York City, Chicago, San Francisco, Atlanta, Las Vegas, Minneapolis, Sacramento and San Juan Capistrano. The concerts were ebullient love fests at which fans flocked en masse to the shows, danced to the Brazilian jazz rhythms, and sang along vociferously during the 90-minute hit parades that featured Basia, longtime collaborator and keyboardist Danny White, and a talented ensemble performing signature tunes including "Promises, " "New Day For You, " "Cruising For Bruising" and "Time and Tide." Almost nightly the vocalist gifted with an instantly identifiable voice was overwhelmed and moved to tears by the heartfelt crowd receptions, thunderous standing ovations and boisterous chants that welcomed her back to the U.S. concert stage. At a tour stop in Washington, DC, Basia recorded a few songs at the Sirius XM studios, including her current single, "From Newport To London, " which is garnering radio airplay across the nation. The dreamy, ethereal track with a hint of cinematic mystery is one of three new recordings penned and produced by Basia and White that complete the otherwise live 15-song collection released last month by eOne Music. During the tour, Danny's brother, Peter White, the iconic guitarist who played on Basia's earlier studio recordings before embarking on his own chart-topping instrumental career, surprised audiences in Los Angeles, Milwaukee and Palm Desert by joining the band to perform a few songs with Basia. Below are excerpts from some of the recently garnered album and concert reviews. Blogcritics: "she has returned to touring, and judging by her newest live album From Newport to London: Greatest Hits Live...And More, Basia exudes the same charisma and multicultural appeal that first enchanted fans in the 1980s. Recorded on June 29, 2011 at the Wytw�rnia cultural center in Poland, the album displays Basia in fine voice as she guides the audience through her past hits as well as newer songsBasia has become an even stronger stage presence, her voice gaining layers and nuances. From Newport to London: Greatest Hits Live...And More showcases an artist still at her peak, joyfully performing new songs as well as reinterpreting classics from her extensive catalog." Smooth Jazz Therapy: "the CD is the ultimate showcase for her work and a timely reminder of the sumptuous quality of her distinctive vocalsThe fact that From Newport To London: Greatest Hits LiveAnd More has been produced to smoothly blend one track into the next serves to give the album a wonderful fluidityBasia runs off one magical hit after the other'Astrud' and 'If Not Now Then When' provide further glimpses of Basia at her Latin best whilst the studio recordings show off another side of her musical persona. The jazzy title cut is the first to be serviced to radio, the oriental flavor of 'Wandering' is as enticing as it is different but in terms of new music there is nothing to surpass the stunningly mellifluous 'There's A Tear'. It is right up there with the album's best but, that said, the quality of this predominately live collection is exemplified by her rendition of the signature hit 'Cruising For Bruising'. Sounding every bit as good as on the recorded version, this superb track is further enhanced by fine trumpet from Kevin Robinson." Minneapolis Star-Tribune: "Brazil-loving Basia and her talented cast combined for a satisfying evening of samba-seasoned cocktail jazzMusically, the Polish-bred, London-based Basia, 56, resides in the intersection of samba, soul, pop and jazz, in top-notch arrangements by her longtime collaborator, keyboardist Danny White. She croons, scats, coos and adores Brazilian musicAs she promised when she plugged the talent of her players, Basia gave ample opportunity for the musicians to solo, including fine new acoustic guitarist Giorgio Serci from Italy and the multilingual Clarisse twins singing in Japanese. The set list featured seven of the 10 tunes from Basia's popular 1987 debut Time and Tide, including the hit title track that made her a favorite on adult-contemporary radio back when there was such a format. She also offered a three-song medley from It's That Girl Again (only her fourth studio album) that suggested that her sound hasn't changed much over all these years." Wine and Jazz: "On to Basia, whose September 24 stop at the very hip, coolly lit and trendy Club Nokia at LA Live in Downtown Los Angeles was part of her tour supporting her wonderful new album From Newport To LondonIt's great to see that neither time nor tide has touched her powerful, emotional voice one bit - and her longtime fans couldn't get enoughIt's great to have you back, Basia!" write your comments about the article :: © 2011 Jazz News :: home page |