Hue Festival 2018 Rehearsal
A preview of some songs for my upcoming shows at the Hue Festival, Vietnam. Enjoy!
Day 10 of my Top 10 Albums
Ok.. here is my number 10 album choice….. Those who know anything about me know that I love to sing and i also love a great voice. There have been a lot of singers that have made an impact on me but i have to say that Lalah Hathaway has had me from album number 1. Her debut album "Lalah Hathaway", came to my ears in 1990. I was 20 and from that moment she became my teacher and I, her student.. Her tone it’s like rich honey just like her daddy’s. If you have not seen her with Snarky Puppy from their album Family Dinner then you have not musically lived....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0SJIgTLe0hc
She sang a song called SOMETHIN'. That was a single off her 1st album in 1990. I’ll post that up here for those who are yet to see it/hear it. Over the years her voice as grown into a full round sound. I had the amazing pleasure of seeing her live in Singapore just a few days ago. For 28 years i have been listening to her voice. We have grown up together, been heart broken together and I hope we can also grow old together. Ladies and gentlemen I have the pleasure of introducing you to Miss Lalah Hathaway...
Day 9 of my Top 10 Albums
At number 2..Is The Brand New Heavies The Brand New Heavies with their 1994 album "Brother Sister". Coming from Ealing in West London, the main members are Jan Kincaid (drums& vocals) Andrew Levy (on Bass) and Simon Bartholomew (on Guitar) and on vocals N’Dea Davenport. Their sound is known as ACID JAZZ. When I was in London. I got a call from The Brand new Heavies' manager asking me to come in for an audition… I was very surprised and extremely nervous. I took myself to a studio in West London, and there they all were ( Jan, Andrew and Simon)… and I had to sing… now, keep in mind, I was all over their sound and N’dea’s vocals. I had to sing a song she was known for.. Oh man….. anyhow.. I went into the vocal booth put my cans on and gave it a good go.. lol… they liked it but….. there were two things they wanted. Both I could not or did not want to give them. 1) sing with no vibrato ( can’t help it).. 2) Leave my solo career to be their vocalist ..Hmmmm…..sounds good but.. No thanks. Anyhow.. everything worked out the way it was meant to .I was in Singapore last week the sing Jazz festival and guess who was there.. BNH live and direct in 2018.. Here is the track I had to sing:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avrhXJjUO3o #Top10
Day 8 of my Top 10 albums
At number 3 is Michael Jackson’s OFF THE WALL. Now, where do I start when talking about Michael Jackson’s musical donations to us, his fellow humans. Off The Wall came to our radios and radio DJs on August 10, 1979. Michael was 21 and about to begin his journey into the of wonderful and kooky world of, ”THE ENTERTAINMENT BUSINESS”. I, on the other hand, was 9 (soon to turn 10) and totally in love with Michael Jackson. Off The Wall was on "Sounds Unlimited” (thanks Donny Sutherland) and even Molly Meldrum (COUNTDOWN) was lucky enough to talk to Michael while he was in the studio. Meanwhile, I watched this all on the telly in my living room. My poor mother - she was subjected to me dancing around, trying to mimic what I was seeing and hearing. To top it all off, my bedroom became a shrine to MJ. I was hooked. “Don’t Stop Till You Get Enough” was/is a TUNNNEEEEEE!!!!! The rhythm guitar is off the chain and so too are the drum patterns. If you have never really LISTENED to this track and album, please take the time to revisit it. The Production is better than anything going on these days. Maybe that’s due to the warmth of Analogue and Tape. Either way, Off The Wall is an album that you can listen to from top to bottom and not skip a track. I miss Michael every day. The day he left us, I cried like a new born baby with colic and a really bad case of nappy rash. I was Devastated, but then I remember all the music he left ME and I’m smiling again.
Day 7 of my Top 10 Albums
At number 4 is Stevie Wonder's SONGS IN THE KEY OF LIFE. Released in 1976, it was Stevie’s eighteenth album! This double album was deemed to be "culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant”. Now for me, as a little black girl growing up in Australia, Stevie Wonder was loud and proud in my house (thanks Mum). I remember hearing this album when I was going to school, getting home from school, having dinner and having a bath. One of my fav tracks off this album is “Black Man”. I love that track as it’s the best history lesson through song I have ever heard. Then there’s "Village Ghetto Land" which takes you on a walk through a Ghetto in the 1970s. “I Wish” lets us see how a little Stevie Wonder “saw” his world as a child. The opening track is a stunner "Love's In Need Of Love Today” and lyrically, to start a song with
“Good morn or evening friends
Here's your friendly announcer
I have serious news to pass on to everybody
What I'm about to say
Could mean the world's disaster
Could change your joy and laughter to tears and pain”.....
It surely makes you sit up and pay attention..
