Echoes Of An Era

The WAIT is over - I, for one, have been a huge Chaka fan/collector, and I have been waiting, like so many other true Chaka fans, for this long-delayed-on-CD stunning, brilliant "lost" album released in the early 80s on Elektra - it could be the most amazing album CHAKA ever recorded?! Featuring Chaka covering several jazz standards, every song is an instant jazz vocal CLASSIC, including the mind-blowing closer, "SPRING CAN REALLY HANG YOU UP THE MOST" - CHAKA belts out notes THAT AREN'T EVEN IN THE BOOK! Aided by legendary jazz musicians/artists like JOE HENDERSON, CHICK COREA, LENNY WHITE and a host of others, THIS CD should be mandatory in every household!! It just wonder why it took Rhino/Elektra/Atlantic TWO DECADES (!!) to finally release it on CD - was it because LP's of this album were selling on EBAY for [...]??!! Oh well, at the least we have it now REMASTERED, sounding better than ever AND the BONUS of CHAKA talking about the LP's creation at the final "hidden" track - I saw CHAKA do an all-jazz show in the mid-90s at The Strand in Redondo Beach - and I have always been frustrated that she never saw fit to release another jazz/vocal album - why why why? Well, at least we have THIS now for all to enjoy - Hooray!! FIVE STARS, no contest, bottom line.

Hearing Chaka sing straight ahead jazz on this project has brought me pure joy for years!! having the lp(which i played to death!)now that it has been reissued on CD, now it gives another generation of fans who missed this when it was first released a chance to hear Ms.Khan in a rare setting!! no this project was not perfect and who's is?? i love the human mistakes, it shows that the musicians and Khan were not out to make a 'perfect'record and the Grammys thought so too by giving this a nomination in the best female jazz catagory! I truly hope in the near future Chaka can continue to sing her favorite music(JAZZ)more!!!

The comments harsly critiquing Chaka's foray into Jazz are simply ill conceived. First, the jazz greats like Chick Corea, Joe Henderson, Stanley Clarke, et.al., were the best judges to decide whether or not Chaka was up to snuff. Secondly, jazz, despite great efforts to the contrary, is not an elitist artform. There is not one right way to perform a piece. There is not one level of proficiency that legitimizes talent. There is abundant room for interpretation; this is at the core of jazz expression. It would be like comparing Ella with Sarah for the purposes of eliminating one. They were both talented, but their approaches and technical prowess were quite different; they each have their place in jazz history.

A more accurate way to describe Chaka's seminal jazz effort is to say that in these early recording she expressed a natural feel for jazz, but did not exhibit the fine expression seen in one singing jazz as a lifetime endeavor. That said and notwithstanding her need for woodshedding, she demonstrates a natural talent for jazz that some current jazz singers would kill for. It's also worth mentioning that they took no more than two takes on each of the recording to try to get a fresh and retro sound.

Producers like Quincy Jones and Herbie Hancock have it right; get the artists together and let them create something new, perhaps unexpected, and replete with energy and enthusiams. For example, Christina Aguilera performance on "A Song For You". Hers is a worthy jazz vocal effort. Just like Chaka's venture into jazz a few decades ago. These efforts by non-jazz artists serve to influence and inspire young artists of every genre and attract a wider audience base to the the jazz genre in general.

Jazz is not what one thinks it ought to be. It simply is. It is alive and as such its boundries are shaped by the past, not limited by it. The problem with critics, such as those seen here, is that they forget that they themselves are limited by their personal experiences and understanding of something that is not the same as it was yesterday. In a word, they are suffering from a severe case of nostalgia These limiting attitudes about jazz are what may cause its demise. If jazz is going to continue as an evolving artform, it must be infused by views that are unique and sometimes tangential (like Parker). It must be inviting to both the listener and the performer alike.

So, is Chaka on a par with Sarah Vaughn with respect to jazz vocal/musicianship? No, but neithter was Ella. For that matter, Tony Benett is not on a par with Mel Torme's scatting ability, but both are legitimate voices in jazz. However, Chaka's "Echoes of An Era" is filled with fresh and richly unique interpretations of jazz standards. It will definitely find its place in your jazz collection.

By the way, Chaka recorded Dizzy Gillespie's "A Night In Tunisia" under the name "The Memory Still Lingers On"... and guess who played the trumpet solo?... that's right, Dizzy. You don't get a much better validation than that.