Torch: A Six Degrees Collection of Modern Torch Songs
Heads,
I posted this on a tread request but after listening to it again as a complete album I felt it deserved its own thread. The CD is old (2003) but I seem to be the only one posting track recommendations from it. So in case you haven't heard here you go....Werd!
Repost:
Got protection? :twisted:
This album is tight, and has at least six must have Killah Tracks (2,3,5,8,9,10). I would have bought this album just for track 2 or 10 alone. Be careful who is around when you play these songs though. Wouldn't want you sending the right message to the wrong person. :oops:
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:pt8m964okep6
Torch: A Six Degrees Collection of Modern Torch Songs
It seems singing about heartbreak has never gone out of style. How else can you explain the enduring popularity of the "Torch Song?" A great torch song can be about being in love or being miserable because of love but they are always about affairs of the heart. From Billie Holiday to Norah Jones, great singers (mostly women) have found a place in their repertoire for these songs of passion.
The idea for this compilation came from a late-night session listening to David Holmes' great CD, This Film's Crap Let's Slash the Seats (I know, I know, scary title, great CD). When the track "Gone" featuring the distinctive voice of St. Etienne's Sarah Cracknell came on, the whole mood in the room changed. Cracknell's hypnotic vocals coupled with the insistent snare drum and modern atmospherics produced a vibe that can only be described as "smoky." It was not hard to imagine the song being performed in a more traditional manner, with more traditional instrumentation in some all-night jazz club. It seemed to me at that moment that "Gone" was the epitome of a modern torch song and I began to dig around for other tracks that conveyed a similar mood.
This is definitely a CD that's all abut mood. From tough to tender, wistful to passionate, the various great singers on this compilation deliver a range of emotions that place these tracks into a classic song style that very much lives and breathes today.