Review
Having peppered his solo career with cover versions of material drawn from impressively diverse origins, Robert Wyatt, now in his mid-60s, here turns his attention to some great tunes from the jazz standards songbook as well as revamping a couple from his own back catalogue.
Consequently, there’s a palpable sense of introspective reflection about much of the record. The sad vulnerability of Wyatt’s paper-thin falsetto is accentuated to the max by the unrequited longing and regretful resignation which are bound into the lyrics of old chestnuts like Laura and Lush Life. Ros Stephens’ string arrangements decorously upholster many of the songs, yet they also contain a certain stiffness that doesn’t always complement Wyatt’s porous falsetto.
Wyatt is clearly not only In a Sentimental Mood, but also up for having a laugh, as his lugubrious reading of What a Wonderful World demonstrates. Whilst there’s no denying the frisson gained from hearing the improbable novelty of Wyatt covering Louis Armstrong’s saccharine swan song, it’s really just fluff and filler compared to some of the potency of the new, original material.
The most cohesive of these is The Ghosts Within. Wyatt cedes the lead vocal to Gilad Atzmon’s wife Tali, on an evocative outing replete with atmospheric bandoneón, sizzling percussion, mournful clarinet and a truly chilling soprano sax coda.
When one hears a musical feast as good and as sultry as this it’s impossible not to conclude that, for all their wistfulness, entertaining enough renditions of standards seem half-baked by comparison. Having moved into the position of being a beloved national treasure status, Wyatt remains at his best when he’s facing forwards rather than looking back.
--Sid SmithFind more music at the BBC This link will take you off Amazon in a new window
Review
Jazz classics and string arrangements make for a delightful album.
This is the most exquisite album I have heard this year, and if close friends don't buy it immediately they'll be getting it for Christmas...
Keith Bruce -- Herald Scotland, 11 Oct 2010
Moving, ethereal and not a little odd - it's the jazz standards songbook as you've never heard it before... The spirit of bebop maestro `Bird' Parker is just one that stalks this luscious, plaintive song cycle, which blends original Wyatt compositions with jazz standards like "Round Midnight" and "Lush Life". Its atmospheric arrangements and bravura playing are as much part of its appeal as Wyatt's evergreen vocals, which are little different at 65 from 40 years ago... Remarkable.
Neil Spencer -- Uncut, November 2010 (****)
Robert Wyatt has always wandered freely through the many genres of popular music, creating a personal oeuvre that is as distinctive as it is hard to define. This one's easier, though. This one's jazz. A collaboration with the violinist Ros Stephen and the saxophonist Gilad Atzmon, it sees Wyatt tackling a range of jazz standards (alongside a few of his own compositions). Actually "tackling" is rather too aggressive a word for Wyatt's vocal approach. He really just sidles up to Laura, Round Midnight, Lush Life, What's New? and In A Sentimental Mood, sometimes singing, occasionally just humming or whistling. The fit between Stephen's string parts and Wyatt's voice is extraordinary - even their brave decision to have a go at What A Wonderful World pays off, despite a somewhat showy solo by Atzmon.
Mark Edwards -- Sunday Times, 17 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 -- The Guardian, Friday 15 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 -- The Independent on Sunday, 10 October 2010
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