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The Guardian, Friday 15 October 2010 (*****)
Robert Wyatt, that most eloquently lackadaisical of jazz-loving English troubadours, has made some unforgettable albums over his long solo career, but this will rank among the frontrunners. Mingling jazz standards such as Lush Life, In a Sentimental Mood and Round Midnight with a scattering of originals, and imaginatively arranged by violinist Ros Stephen for the poetic Gilad Atzmon's alto sax and clarinet and a string ensemble, it strikes a balance between tradition-observing musicality and Wyatt's knack for getting to the painful or joyous heart of things while sounding as if he has just dropped in off the street. From the moment Atzmon's vibrant alto curls around Wyatt's matter-of-fact delivery of Laura, through the microtonal clarinet intro to a vocal line mixing falsetto sounds with guttural contemplation on Lullaby for Irena, to the Sergeant Pepper-like quirkiness of electronics and vocal whimsy on Maryan, the session barely misses a beat. Wyatt offhandedly whistles his way through Round Midnight, plays movingly muted trumpet on Lush Life, and comes close to Louis Armstrong's Wonderful World for gratefully dazzled simplicity.
John Fordham
John Fordham
The Independent on Sunday, 10 October 2010
The mockney Chet Baker sound of Robert Wyatt singing standards ("Laura", "Lush Life", would you believe "What a Wonderful World"?) to the taut yet tender backing of the Sigamos String Quartet was the inspired idea of violinist Ros Stephen.
And that would be enough. But what takes this beyond, into a characteristic Wyatt-world where the personal and political are fused is the context of Palestine, reflected in Alfreda Benge's lyrics and the presence of Gilad Atzmon, who produces and plays. Amazing.
Phil Johnson
And that would be enough. But what takes this beyond, into a characteristic Wyatt-world where the personal and political are fused is the context of Palestine, reflected in Alfreda Benge's lyrics and the presence of Gilad Atzmon, who produces and plays. Amazing.
Phil Johnson
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
29 of 30 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
When I heard Robert Wyatt singing What a Wonderful World, I believed it just might be.
This is a beautiful sumptious, largely downbeat, wistful album. It contains mostly covers of jazz standards in the unusual company of a string quartet, plus double bass and smatterings of saxaphone and clarinet. Swinging American tunes are underlayed with an austere, beautifully harmonic, European backing. Elsewhere there are tinges of the middle east.
Robert covers his own cover of Chic's At Last I am Free to wonderful effect. There are just too many highlights to mention, but What a Wonderful World astonished me.
Robert Wyatt's vocal phrasing is just outstanding. Its quite unobtrusive and I didn't notice at first - but many of these songs demand a great deal from the singer to tumble out the words with such elegance.
So why only four stars? Well I think there are two flaws. It rather surprised me that I found some of Gilad Atzmon's contributions on saxaphone and clarinet a little bit too "wine bar". Most of his lines were terrific but just a few tracks contained sax that went beyond merely pretty to plain bland I thought. And while there was nothing wrong with the crashing percussion and rap in Where Are The Now? per se, I just don't feel the track fits with the rest of the album.
But what an album the rest of it is. Everything a joy tinged with sadness. Like nostalgia for happy times that makes you sigh knowing they can't return. But nice to remember all the same.
This is a beautiful sumptious, largely downbeat, wistful album. It contains mostly covers of jazz standards in the unusual company of a string quartet, plus double bass and smatterings of saxaphone and clarinet. Swinging American tunes are underlayed with an austere, beautifully harmonic, European backing. Elsewhere there are tinges of the middle east.
Robert covers his own cover of Chic's At Last I am Free to wonderful effect. There are just too many highlights to mention, but What a Wonderful World astonished me.
Robert Wyatt's vocal phrasing is just outstanding. Its quite unobtrusive and I didn't notice at first - but many of these songs demand a great deal from the singer to tumble out the words with such elegance.
So why only four stars? Well I think there are two flaws. It rather surprised me that I found some of Gilad Atzmon's contributions on saxaphone and clarinet a little bit too "wine bar". Most of his lines were terrific but just a few tracks contained sax that went beyond merely pretty to plain bland I thought. And while there was nothing wrong with the crashing percussion and rap in Where Are The Now? per se, I just don't feel the track fits with the rest of the album.
But what an album the rest of it is. Everything a joy tinged with sadness. Like nostalgia for happy times that makes you sigh knowing they can't return. But nice to remember all the same.
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
I find Robert Wyatt's singing voice an incredible instrument, and on this record he really uses it to perfection. Robert's voice has an amazing fragility linked to awesome ability to time phrasing, yet underpinning that fragile vulnerability is a real steel of emotional strength. This whole record I find is about those juxtapositions of things that are almost contradictory but which actually complement one another. Elsewhere someone takes off marks claiming that there are elements such as cocktail jazz sax that he feels lets the ensemble down, personally I find it is just those things that give this record real appeal. At very corner you come across something of interest, sometime odd and unsettling, sometimes not, but always of interest.If they only had Robert singing What a wonderful world, I would give this top marks, but the other ten tracks are all of immense value, this is a real treasure.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
What a marvellously creative setting for Robert Wyatt's music and a beautifully crafted and understated performance as well. The cover-of-a-cover of 'At Last I am Free' is just as highly emotive as the original recording. I also particularly like the title track and the cover of Wyatt's own 'Maryan' is just exquisite. Like the other reviewers, I was surprised to hear a Wyatt version of 'What a Wonderful World', but in a strange way it is exactly appropriate to round off the album. If you are a Wyatt fan you cannot fail to enjoy this release.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
stunning emotional intensity and passion
Every time I hear this album I feel emotionally uplifted and spiritually inspired. The playing is virtuosic throughout, the original songs deeply poetic and the depth of feeling of... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Kingsley Flint
Sublime
I have to admit that I approached this album with mixed feelings. I have always loved Robert Wyatt's music, from the earliest Soft Machine when Daevid Allen was still on board Jet... Read more
Published 12 months ago by Numinous Ugo
haunting ambient jazz with eniglishnicity
I love listening to this album and looking out of my office window at the snow in cambridge - the playing is amazing and even if you don't find robert wyatt's voice wonderful (and... Read more
Published 17 months ago by Jon A. Crowcroft
Robert Wyatt, For The Ghosts Within
A slightly quirky album, but most enjoyable. Robert, to the purist might seem not to have much of a voice, but it really suits the songs on this album. Read more
Published 18 months ago by Mr. Kevan R. Barrett
a very good album by an amazing artist, Robert Wyatt the Little Red...
What makes Wyatt's music, and albums, different from any other music produced on Earth, is the truth of the Expression he has discovered within himself in the course of a 40plus... Read more
Published 18 months ago by Davide Sapienza
Love Robert Wyatt's voice
I have always loved Robert Wyatt's wonderful pure voice and I admire him for always pushing the boundaries and trying new musical approaches. Read more
Published 18 months ago by Jossister
Very singular music
Robert Wyatt's CD is wonderful. There is great variety of styles on each of the tracks, some beautiful and some haunting.
Published 18 months ago by Mr. R. E. Whyte
For Ghosts Within
I received this item promptly and it was in good condition. Now I just have to persuade my teenager to read it!
Published 19 months ago by Ms. H. Forbes
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