Ran Blake - Cocktails At Dusk: A Noir Tribute To Chris Connor (2014) [Hi-Res]

What constitutes the Chris Connor style? After 60 years of listening to Chris Connor-- starting with the incredible Bill Russo arrangement “All About Ronnie” (1953), I still ask myself this question. I believe it is the tone of her voice, her sense of dynamics, her rhythmical concept in phrasing and accent, and most of all three qualities which I consider of paramount importance: her intensity, or use of silence, and her ability to surprise.

Perhaps the real greatness and originality of Chris Connor lies in the first quality mentioned: her extraordinary intensity. This intensity would often spring directly from her manipulations of rhythm and through her breath control, which was her greatest technical asset. She was able to extend and carryover phrases that most other singers have to break up. She could hold onto a note or a phrase, filling it with her tone for its whole rhythmic life. Chris would also double the tempo at dramatic moments, subdivide the beat in original ways, lag behind and urgently pull ahead. Chris’ personal approach to show tune lyrics was another of her many marvelous qualities. Many show tunes have trivial themes and inane lyrics, but when Chris sang these songs she was absolutely as personal- and if you’ll excuse the word, “deep” - as Mingus, Bartok, Monk, Archie Shepp, Ben Webster, John Lewis, Elliott Carter, Otis Redding, or Gunther Schuller. You can hear anger, pathos, and great tenderness.

In a pop ballad, Chris’ voice would suddenly surge, and perhaps at the oddest moment when the audience would least expect- keeping them on the edge of their seats with Chris’ mercurial thrashes. “What will happen next?” This is immediately startling for its own sake, but what makes it even more fascinating is how this is jux- taposed within the piece, set, or evening as a whole.

Chris’ voice quite often is low and husky, but so are those of dozens of other singers. What particularly intrigues me is the way in which her vibrato is introduced just before the release of a sustained note. When speaking of Chris’ voice, we must also examine her use of dynamics and use of silence. Virtually no jazz singer of the 20th century used dynamics in such a thrilling and unpredictable manner.

Young people who have not been exposed to her are missing a kind of experience which the singers they are listening to, though they may have other virtues, don’t provide. It’s my hope that through this record dedicated to her that people will become more aware of her incredible contribution to jazz, and music as a whole. (Downbeat, May 28th 1970)

Tracklist:
01. Ran Blake - Ten Cents A Dance (5:00)
02. Ran Blake - All About Ronnie (5:11)
03. Ran Blake - Fine And Dandy (2:44)
04. Ran Blake - Why Can’t I (4:05)
05. Ran Blake - Where Are You? (4:54)
06. Ran Blake - I Get A Kick Out Of You (4:21)
07. Ran Blake - Moon Ride (2:31)
08. Ran Blake - Go 'Way From My Window (3:25)
09. Ran Blake - Almost Like Being In Love (2:10)
10. Ran Blake - Hallelujah I Love Her So (2:23)
11. Ran Blake - Speak Low (3:03)
12. Ran Blake - Anything Goes (3:07)
13. Ran Blake - Driftwood (3:44)