Jazz
Andy Bey was 56 when he recorded Ballads, Blues and Bey in 1995, and despite the fact that his voice had more rough edges than it did in the 1960s and '70s, he still had an impressive range and was among jazz's most expressive male singers. For this project, the Newark, NJ native didn't employ a band — his only accompaniment is his own acoustic piano, and this spare, intimate approach really makes Bey's heartfelt vocals stand out on such chestnuts as "Someone to Watch Over Me," "Embraceable You" and "You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To." This time, the Duke Ellington songbook is a high priority for Bey, who demonstrates how marvelous an interpreter of lyrics he is on "In a Sentimental Mood," "Day Dream" and other Ellington gems. Unfortunately, Bey still wasn't nearly as well known in jazz circles as he deserved to be, and he continued to be one of the great unsung heroes of jazz singing.
By Alex Henderson.
**
Though he is a deftly understated piano player and a singer with a heartbreakingly pure voice, Andy Bey's recorded output is scant. Despite stints with the likes of Horace Silver, Max Roach, and Louis Jordan, Bey's only readily available work is this "comeback" disc released in 1996. Ballads, Blues & Bey is a showcase for Bey's range, which begins as a velvety smooth baritone and often launches into the tenor range to accommodate the emotional peaks and valleys in his repertoire of standards. Bey's treatment of those standards is deliciously slow. He draws out lines and adds pauses to squeeze a tune for everything it's worth. Bey uses the piano sparingly, only touching the keys to add color or nuance rather than rhythm and melody. Bey's take on these songs is delicate, as if too heavy a hand might tarnish the joy and sadness he's trying to evoke. A moving and beautiful disc.
By S. Duda.
**
The opening track of this disc was played for a 'Blindfold Test' panel, at the 2003 Monterey Jazz Festival, that consisted of Kevin Mahagonny, Kurt Elling, Mark Murphy and Jon Hendricks. The audience was spellbound and the singers were unanimous in the special qualities and beauty of Bey's work. But the best way to describe this album was in Mark Murphy's words; "this is the tempo of love."
All the tempos are slow, Bey's own accompaniments spare. He stretches out each tune, but his method is unique; he phrases almost independantly of the tune, but so musically and beautifully that it combines both the tension and release of the melodys all but breaking free from the harmonies, always to return, and of course the sheer expressive beauty of his voice, which is a wonder, but may not be to everyone's taste. It is an instrument, and he thinks instrumentally, unlike pop singers but like all the great jazz singers. In a serious way he is the opposite side of the coin to Betty Carter, each reworking the standard fare to discover the NEW, yet approaching from opposite directions. Cherishable.
By George Grella.
**
01.Someone To Watch Over Me 6:19
02.You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To 8:08
03.I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart 7:39
04.In A Sentimental Mood 7:03
05.Willow Weep For Me 6:46
06.Yesterdays 7:40
07.If You Could See Me Now 6:16
08.I'm Just A Lucky So And So 5:21
09.Day Dream 7:19
10.Embraceable You 6:33
**
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