Katherine
Kim
Reviews:
March,
2005

Amos Lee
Amos Lee

(Blue Note Records)

www.bluenote.com

Amos Lee, if he wanted to, could easily be my romantic boyfriend. He would play his guitar and serenade me on a lazy Sunday morning as I rolled out of bed to make us brunch. At times he sings with soul; other times he is cool and smooth. For now, however, the only thing I can do is play his first CD, out this month since he signed with Blue Note Records late last year, which is a clever and moving collection of musical poems. The Philadelphia native mosied onto the rock scene last year opening for a number of legendary musicians such as Bob Dylan, BB King and Mose Allison. He also opened for Norah Jones on her European tour. He is currently on tour with "The Bob Dylan Show" opening for Bob Dylan and Merle Haggard.

This disc has 11 tracks and seems to encompass two distinct parts with track 6, "Soul Suckers," being the break between the two parts. The first half of the album, including "Soul Suckers," could have made a great album by itself. It is romantic, soulful and slightly gospel-like. The accompanying instruments are well chosen and create the mood that compliments Lee's voice, lyrics and emotion starting with the light easy groove of "Keep it Loose, Keep it Tight," which is kind of Norah Jones-ish and surprisingly enough features Jones playing the piano part. The subsequent songs get progressively more soulful and sad. Lee brings in a Hammond B3 and electric guitar in "Seen it All Before," and then let drums sneak into the mood in "Arms of a Woman." The Hammond B3 then leads and livens things up in "Give it Up," and everything comes together in the bluesy "Dreamin'." Finally, the cello, along with an instrument that can only play sad melodies, the viola, are brought in to back Lee up in "Soul Suckers." This is one of the best songs on the track because it projects what I think is a style that distinguishes Lee from the run-of-the-mill, acoustic playing and poetic singing, coffeehouse artist.

The tone then changes in the second half of the album. It seems all the soul from the first half is sucked out and there is little left for the next two tracks, "Colors" and "Bottom of the Barrel." This is where I feel like telling Lee: step away from the mandolin. It is too country and twangy and I think his voice flows better against a fuller sound and deeper groove. It is not as bad in "Colors" where Jones returns on piano and softens up the mandolin. The final tracks have some of the flavor of the earlier songs and round out the album nicely.

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Nigel Kennedy
Vivaldi II

(EMI Classics)

www.emiclassics.com

There is a comment by Nigel Kennedy on the album cover of Vivaldi IIwhere he characterizes Vivaldi as the type who probably wrote down his feelings as soon as he woke up in the morning. Listening to this album, Kennedy captures a particular spontaneity projected in his works. All in all, it is a very well thought out selection of Vivaldi concertos and makes for an excellent addition to anyone's Kennedy collection.

Reading the list of concertos on this album, it seems that Kennedy might share the spotlight with other soloists because there are four concertos with multiple solo parts. There are two double violin concertos, RV 519 and RV 507, a concerto for violin and oboe, RV 548, and a concerto for two violins and cello, RV 578. Listening to the album, however, although you can hear two distinct voices in the Allegros of the double violin concertos, for example, Kennedy's style is so distinct that at times it is clear which voice is his and it dominates the dialogue between the two violins. In the Largos, the dialogue between the two violins becomes an expressive and poignant serenade. The final double violin concerto with cello, RV 578, sounds like a skeletal version of the Four Seasons, opening, unfortunately, with a Psycho shower scene-ish Adagio and spiccato.

In the other duet, Kennedy is paired up with an oboe in B flat major, RV 548. I was never a big fan of the oboe -always sounded to me like a clarinet with a cold. But this really is a beautiful concerto, especially the Largo which is so delicate and sweet. It sounds like a leather-clad Puck marching through the forest looking for someone to play with and encountering a mysterious creature that teaches him a strange new dance.

There seems to be a purpose in the arrangement of the concertos on the album as well. All the duet concertos are spaced out with the solo concertos in between. All the concertos and the single sonata are short enough that it almost sounds like there is a broader dialogue between the double violins and the solo violin with the orchestra. Kennedy, of course, stands out in all, but it seems his violin solos in RV 356, RV 12 and RV 230 lead the orchestra in response to the dialogue between the double violins in the previous concertos, almost as if it were a third voice. An added touch is that the first two double concertos, RV 519 and RV 507, are in major keys and the responses back to those concertos, RV 356 and RV 12, are in minor keys.

Another interesting element throughout the disc is the harpsichord. The harpsichord is noteworthy because although it looks like a piano it is not. It is completely different and not the easiest instrument to play. After tuning into the harpsichord it was fascinating to hear it keep up with the violins in the Allegros of the various concertos.

Vivaldi II is another album demonstrating Kennedy's command over Vivaldi. As an avid Kennedy follower who has watched him dominate the classical music world, cross over to other genres of music and even write his own music, one can only ask: where is a virtuoso like Kennedy supposed to look for his next challenge?

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