Patricia BARBER - A Fortnight in France (Live) 2004

Patricia BARBER - A Fortnight in France (Live) 2004

Jazz

Since her beguiling 1991 debut, Distortion of Love, songwriter, pianist, and vocalist Patricia Barber has steadfastly remained true to her quirky, left-of-center jazz vision, which includes equal parts edgy pop and rock. Barber has a fluid, restlessly individualistic style on the piano; she can hold her own with anybody. Her songwriting comes from that particular space where the notes and rhythms begin to bleed into one another and come out jagged, sophisticated, and full of razored poetic wit and steely philosophical insight about the ironies of modern life. This set was recorded in three French cities, Paris, Metz, and La Rochelle. Utilizing her longstanding band (bassist Michael Arnopol, drummer Eric Montzka, and guitarist Neal Alger), Barber displays in spades the skill of this band to improvise, swing, and cut across musical lines on five originals and five covers. The disc features two new compositions. "Gotcha" is a steamy, nocturnal piece of jazzed-up pop with a killer seductive bassline by Arnopol. Lyrically, Barber evokes the humor and sophistication of Mose Allison, but takes it to a darker, stiletto-sharp edge. "White World" is a politically spiked, funky, futuristic jazz tune from her upcoming song cycle based on Ovid's Metamorphoses. There are two cuts from her 2002 outing, Verse, as well: the shimmering minor-key and erotically tinged drama of "Dansons la Gigue!," with lyrics by 19th century poet Paul Verlaine, and the silky and forlorn "Pieces." A fine pair of instrumentals are also featured in Barber's "Crash," with its deep groove and killer piano solo, and a near intoxicating read of the nugget "Witchcraft." Add to this a mournful and haunted take on Johnny Mercer's "Laura," the eternally elegant "Blue Prelude," and a finely elongated, loose read of "Norwegian Wood." The set ends with a cabaret version of the old Chris Montez pop classic "Call Me," which -- for all its camp -- comes off as a nice little bit of samba. Unlike most live records, this is a welcome chapter in the Barber book, with surprises, risky behavior, and top-flight musicianship.
By Thom Jurek. AMG.
**
Critically-acclaimed jazz pianist-vocalist Patricia Barber performs live in France with her outstanding quartet delighting listeners with a mix of original compositions and standards including "Witchcraft," "Call Me" and "Norwegian Wood."

Recorded in March and April 2004 at clubs in three French cities (L’Arsenal in Metz, La Coursive in La Rochelle and La Cigale in Paris), Live: A Fortnight In France is her eighth release, and offers further proof that Patricia Barber is at the vanguard of the new school of jazz singer/songwriters who are continuing to explore intriguing improvisational terrain.

The newest collection from our beloved Patricia Barber was recorded live in three venues during her 2004 European tour (L’Arsenal in Metz, La Coursive in La Rochelle and La Cigale in Paris). The album showcases the pianist/vocalist’s songwriting on five new originals and interpretive skills on 'Laura,' 'Witchcraft,' 'Call Me,' and 'Norwegian Wood.' As you would expect, the sonics are just as stunning as the performances. The bass playing of Michael Arnopol is incredible and recorded impeccably. Neil Alger’s guitar playing is his best work to date and really stands out in his solos. Drum work by Eric Montzka suits the band perfectly. Barber’s singing and playing are tremendous, and through her arrangements, allows the band to truly express themselves. This disc will test the limits of your system.
Our Highest Recommendation!
**
Michael Arnopol- Bass
Eric Montzka- Drums
Neal Alger- Guitar
Patricia Barber- Piano, Vocals, Producer
**
01. Gotcha 6:14
02. Dansons La Gigue! 5:13
03. Crash 7:28
04. Laura 5:27
05. Pieces 6:47
06. Blue Prelude 5:54
07. Witchcraft 6:28
08. Norwegian Wood 7:10
09. Whiteworld 6:08
10. Call Me 6:37
**
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Patricia BARBER - Split 1989

Patricia BARBER - Split 1989
Label: Floyd

Jazz

Pianist/vocalist Patricia Barber's recording debut, Split, is a fairly straight-ahead affair featuring the idiosyncratic stylist on various standards and originals. Showcasing her unique approach to jazz, the album finds Barber mixing pointed and minimalist lines à la Chet Baker with a dramatic cabaret vocal style and complex harmonic post-bop passages -- a template that longtime fans will recognize. To these ends, Barber opens with a brisk Latin version of "Early Autumn," takes a dusky vocal turn on "Easy to Love," and shows her cerebral side on such originals as "Winter Illusion." Joining Barber here are bassist Michael Arnopol and drummer Mark Walker. [Originally released on Floyd Records in 1989, Koch reissued the disc in 2004.]
By Matt Collar, All Music Guide.
**
Patricia Barber- Piano, Vocals
Michael Arnopol- Bass
Mark Walker- Drums
**
01. Early Autumn (4:26)
02. Greys (5:33)
03. Alone Together (4:31)
04. Spy Sly (4:27)
05. Easy to Love (4:33)
06. Too Late Now (4:48)
07. Winter Illusion (5:24)
08. Retrograde (3:20)
09. Two for the Road (4:41)
10. Then I'll Be Tired of You (5:10)
**
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Patricia BARBER - Verse 2002

Patricia BARBER - Verse 2002
Label: Blue Note

Jazz

Patricia Barber has made enough breakout albums to be brought up on charges. Her career, not to mention her music, has been like a giant rainbow arcing eternally upward with bursts of bright giddy colors and dark moody tones. But like her last album, Nightclub, and before that Companion and Modern Cool, this is the one that will bring her a bigger audience. The difference here is that this is the singer-pianist's first album of all original songs. With Dave Douglas dancing his trumpet around her witty and literate tales, these 10 scholarly vignettes are reminiscent of the way the great Cole Porter educated his listeners while thoroughly twisting the English language in an irresistibly entertaining way. "I Could Eat Your Words" is about philosophy, cooking, and falling in love with your college professor. In it she somehow can "suck the salt from erudition, drink remorse like a cabernet, sweeten with equivocation" and still swing. Many singers would still be stuck on "erudition" while Barber--all sly, darkly slick, and witty--continues to compose from a high artistic perch. Mentioning David Hockney, Edward Hopper, and Goya in the text of "If I Were Blue," and Baudelaire in "You've Gotta Go Home," ain't no easy trick.
By Mark Ruffin.
**
I've been in the past intrigued by Barber's work even though it hadn't always clicked for me, & I hadn't been strongly impressed by the two last discs, _Companion_ & _Nightclub_ (the latter a set of standards so low-key as to be ultimately rather dull). So _Verse_ came as something of a surprise, one of her most fully satisfying albums. Read on the page her lyrics can be a bit arch and over-literary (her enthusiasm for ee cummings is an ominous sign), but as a singer she manages to give them a slightly veiled delivery which puts them over very nicely. She's got a terrific band here--Dave Douglas & Joey Baron are the stars of course, & there's her regular bassist Michael Arnapol, but the real standout is guitarist Neal Alger, whom I've not come across before. He's really the main person responsible for the textures & coloration here much of the time, since Barber herself only plays piano on a few tracks.
There are some stunningly strange moments on the album--the weightless opening of "The Moon", the mournful echoing guitar & tiny shards of a distant string orchestra on "Clues"--as well as some attractive grooves, often in Barber's favourite off-kilter time-signatures (5 and 7). The one dud for me is "The Fire", which seems to me an attempt to work in the territory of short-story writers like Raymond Carver--it's a bit too cliched in its portrayal of a suburban housewife's ennui to work, I think, & the music is nearly static. But the other 9 tracks are often superb, & always take a few risks--the conceits of "I Could Eat Your Words" & "If I Were Blue" could be merely precious (respectively, a students' erotic obsession with her teacher & with philosophy, expressed in culinary conceits; & a dark-toned elegy which draws its comparisons from various artists' characteristic palettes--"David Hockney's pool" "an Edward Hopper afternoon" &c.). But these actually work out well because of the spareness of the settings & because the conceits work to remove the music from a sense of embarrassing or overweening confessionalism. Perhaps Thomas Campion or John Dowland are closer to the mark than ee cummings?

Very much recommended. Like most of Barber's work it'll probably divide people into virulently opposed camps: it was quite instructive to see that in _Downbeat_ they handed this to four critics & ended up, not with consensus, but with two extremely enthusiastic reviews & two bitter pans. I'm on the side of the enthusiasts: how about you?
By N. Dorward.
**
Bass - Michael Arnopol
Drums - Eric Montzka (tracks: 9) , Joey Baron (tracks: 1 to 8)
Guitar - Neal Alger
Trumpet - Dave Douglas
And
Patricia Barber
**
01. Moon (6:02)
02. Lost In This Love (3:01)
03. Clues (4:57)
    Conductor [Strings], Arranged By [Strings] - Cliff Colnot
    Strings - Baird Dodge , Fox Fehling , Judy Stone (2) , Karen Dirks , Katinka Kleijn ,
    Lawrence Brown (3) , Lawrence Neuman , Lee Lane , Lei Hou ,
04  Pieces (5:33)
05. I Could Eat Your Words (7:49)
06. Fire (4:49)
07. Regular Pleasures (5:40)
08. Dansons La Gigue (4:18)
    Lyrics By [Adapted From A Text By] - Paul Verlaine
09. You Gotta Go Home (3:16)
10. If I Were Blue (6:00)
**
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Patricia BARBER - Cafe Blue 1994

Patricia BARBER - Cafe Blue  1994
Label: Blue Note
Audio CD: August 31, 1999
Recorded at Chicago Recording Company, Chicago,
Illinois between June & July 1994

Jazz

Patricia Barber, who is both a fine keyboardist and an atmospheric singer, contributes roughly half of the material to her Premonition debut. Her dark voice and the generally esoteric program takes awhile to get used to (listeners will have to be patient), but after two or three listens, this thought-provoking and rather moody set becomes more accessible. The music ranges stylewise from sophisticated pop sensitivities to the avant-garde and even touches of minimalism, while not fitting securely into any category. Barber gives a new slant to "The Thrill Is Gone," "Ode to Billy Joe," and even "A Taste of Honey," and her vocals are all quite haunting and contemporary. An added plus to this unusual music is adventurous guitarist John McLean.
By Scott Yanow, All Music Guide.
**
Patricia Barber- Vocals, Piano
Michael Arnopol- Bass
John Mclean- Guitar
Also,
Mark Walker- Drums, Rercussion
**
01. What A Shame (5:24)
02. Mourning Grace (6:59)
03. The Thrill is Gone (4:39)
04. Romanesque (4:27)
05. Yellow Car III (5:08)
06. Wood is a Pleasant Thing to Think About (0:57)
07. Inch Worm (5:03)
08. Ode to Billy Joe (5:20)
09. Too Rich for my Blood (7:59)
10. A Taste of Honey (4:28)
11. Nardis (9:02)
12. Manha de Carnaval (3:23)
**
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