| CD REVIEW Bettye LaVette |
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Band : Bettye LaVette Although I still had a few (try about 10) albums to review with a release date prior to this one, it would’ve been unfair not start on this one now, as I’ve had the promo download at home for just over 2 months now, and all of the others were more recent arrivals. Therefore, pressed in time to get this review out there in time for the release, for once… First, I want to relate to you some of the confusion I felt when I first read the (really scarce) info the label gave us with the download copy of the album : “Bettye LaVette brings the British Invasion home to its American R&B roots on her latest CD Interpretations: The British Rock Songbook…While Bettye’s Grammy nominated 2007 disc The Scene Of The Crime went to the source to find triumph over her own anguish, Interpretations looks to the past this time for inspiration and uncovers common ancestry in seemingly divergent musical paths.” Fell somewhat confused? I know what it’s like! I mean, not being able to place the artist at first, and going from that (rather scarce) bit of info, I felt rather justified in thinking what we had to do with a rather young female singer, whom was now at her second album. Thinking “young”, I also thought the “R&B” part was short for “Rhythm ‘n’ Black” or, in other words for the type of Pop music brought by coloured people one has come to call that way over the last 15 years or so! Well, the latter idea was blown right out of the door (much to my pleasure) when I first listened to the album! Because what’s meant here is the original meaning of the term R&B, being Rhythm & Blues, a type of music which goes back to the early ‘50s, and may indeed have been brought originally by coloured people, but sure wasn’t made that exclusive. However, even with the R&B bit placed, I felt the singer’s lived hoarse voice to be rather very soulful. So there I went off on an info-seeking spree…and what was the first thing I discovered? LaVette is not a young artist at all, but a lady born under the name Betty Haskins back in January 1946...and one of the greatest Soul voices of her time! In contrast of most singers of her age, she was nót raised musically in the church choir, but rather at home in front of the radio, with several R&B and Country and Western singers as her inspirations! Aged only 16 she’s discovered by a local record producer, with whom she records her debut single “My Man – He’s A Lovin’ Man”. The single grows to legendary proportions thanks to Atlantic Records buying distribution rights, and the success leads to a tour with R&B musicians Clyde McPhatter, Ben E. King, Barbara Lynn, and then newcomer Otis Redding. Her next single to hit the charts is the even more classic Soul hit “Let Me Down Easy” in 1965 and, well, I’m sorry, but when I found that out I was sold! I’m a bit emotional right now, and prefer to get on with this review a bit faster (If you’d let me I’d just drag things out too much anyway), so for the rest of the lady’s detailed history, please check her page at Wikipedia. Important to know is that Bettye’s debut full-length was waited for until 1982’s Tell Me A Lie (there’d been a small mishap with Atlantic/ Atco at the beginning of the ‘70s which left its mark on the artist for quite a while). In the new millenium Bettye’s finally been getting some of her dues, and today she’s recognized for the Great Lady Of Soul that she is! Several of her old albums have been re-issued in recent years (including sought-after compilations of her earliest material, ànd the “lost” Atlantic/ Atco album Child Of the Seventies), and she was there at the We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration in January 2009. Anti- signed the vocally talented Bettye in early 2005 for a 3-record contract, the first product of which was 2005’s I’ve Got My Own Hell To Raise, an album written entireely by women (among which Joan Armatrading, Fiana Apple, Sinnéad O’Connor, Dolly Parton, and others) which made it onto many a critic’s “Best Of 2005” lists. It’s the success of this album which caused the re-issue of Bettye’s older material, really. And, somehow we’ve come ful-circle to this article’s intro. The new album sees Bettye interprete a number of songs from the British Invasion era [that’s the ‘60s and very early ‘70s, baby, including (in chronological order as on the album) The Beatles’ “The Word”, Traffic’s “No Time To Live”, the classic “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” (known, amongst others from the cover version by Gary Moore) Led Zeppelin’s “All Of My Love”, George Harrison’s “isn’t It A Pity”, Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here”, Ringo Starr’s “It Don’t Come Easy”, Paul McCartney’s “Maybe I’m Amazed”, The Rolling Stones’ “Salt Of the Earth”, The Moody Blues classic “Nights In White Satin”, Eric Clapton‘s “Why Does Love Got To Be So Sad”, and Elton John’s “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down On Me”], giving each and every one of the tracks a flavouring to make ‘em her own. As she mentions herself, she’s a somewhat cocky singer, prefering even to change vocal melody lines in order to make a song sound the way shé likes, rather than how it was intended by the original artist. Now you would expect people to dislike that idea, wouldn’t you, but actually Bettye’s been getting nothing but praise from the artists she’s covered…and with good cause! Her voice is só intense, so…soulful (an notice I didn’t write that with a capital letter), no listener into good music and good singing can help getting emotionally touched with the material she offers. To a lot of readers some of these songs may have a special meaning, but I’m sure many will be those who’ll wonder how comes Bettye wasn’t the original artist to begin with! Rave, ràve review time! To find out what I’m exactly ranting about, you can check out samples of all of the album’s songs (including the live bonus track “Love Reign O’er Me” from the Who, recorded at the Kennedy Center Honours to celebrate both Peter Townsend and Roger Datrey) at bettyelavette.com, or a couple of full-length versions (along with some older stuff, including the classic “Let Me Down Easy”, at myspace.com/bettyelavette. Do it now, and start enjoying this exceptionally beautiful voice! Darn, this one makes my year-lists in a category all of its own!!! 98/100 Tony. |