REVIEWSUpdated July 24, 2004.
This page will be updated occasionally with reviews and other items about AMERICAN TUNE. Generally the reviews will start out on the "What's New" page and find a more permanent home here. They are listed chronologically.
July 10, 2003: Terry Wogan previewed "Dark Eyed Molly" this morning from the forthcoming AMERICAN TUNE album. Previously he played the title song, "American Tune." Joe writes, "My shorthand is not what it used to be, but here goes what Terry said - there is no introduction to Eva, the record just begins. At the end Terry says 'An old folks song beautifully sung by Eva Cassidy, "Dark Eyed Molly" from a new CD - they have some more new recordings from clubs from this wonderful singer and new CD, American Tune, will be released on 11th August, which is a little wait but we will be playing some more tracks and I am sure Richard Allinson will also." In the background you can hear Paul Walters saying "Oh yes." That's the gist of it, Laura - as ever Terry did a wonderful job and did Eva proud - loved the song, and having Celtic connections and blood, felt it was very haunting.
I think the most important aspect is the manner and feeling you can sense from Terry when he speaks about Eva, and Paul is always chipping away in the background. I know all the Cassidy family appreciate what Terry and Paul have done to promote Eva and while they are celebrities in their own right they are just a couple of guys who share with us in knowing what a gem we have in Eva."
Here's the first of (presumably) many reviews of AMERICAN TUNE. This is on the contactmusic.com website in a list of the "latest music releases." Some quotes: "Some newly discovered rehearsal tapes of the magical Eva are the basis for this latest collection of her recordings - 'American Tune' contains a mix of live recordings, rehearsal tracks and demos.... Among these are sublime covers of 'Yesterday' (one of the first tracks she ever recorded) and 'It Don't Mean A Thing', and overall this is another mesmerising instalment in the unearthing of a modern-day genius's legacy. RECOMMENDED." Thanks, as so often, to Henrik in Denmark for spotting this.
Early August: Critic and songwriter Steven Digman's
review of AMERICAN TUNE is now available on his website. Steven tells me the review will also appear in Hagerstown's Pickett News this coming weekend. Here's his overall assessment: "AMERICAN TUNE will soon become an American Classic...It is a listening study into the heart (art) of Cassidy style vocal fusion. A successful union of ten-tracks formed into a beautiful CD syncretism, of one great voice singing (meeting), the diversity of songs."
Steve in York listened to Steve Massam's show this weekend. He writes, 'He played "Take My Breath Away" which he described as "truly stunning," and then I fancied I heard him add quietly "it does." I'm with Mr Massam on that because it's just beautiful. Eva's voice really soars to those high notes, and there's a nice mellow sounding electric guitar. Is that original, or a later over-dub?
Steve Massam went on to mention that Chris Biondo will be in the country in a few weeks time and Steve said he hopes very much that Chris will join him on "The Sunday Show" for a chat about Eva's music. That to me sounds like the trip will involve a grueling schedule of interviews because there are a heck of a lot of local stations in addition to the national ones... and that's just this country."
This Netherlands website announces the new album, AMERICAN TUNE. I don't read Dutch too well, but it looks like an enthusiastic endorsement. Thanks to Doug in PA for spotting this. **UPDATE: Henrik in Denmark, who works as a translator, has kindly translated the Dutch for us (thanks again, Henrik!): ‘The new Eva Cassidy album that is released on August 11 is called "American tune" and certainly cannot be regarded as the last scrapings from the archive of recordings by this singer who died in 1996 and has since become a legend. What led to this album was the entirely unexpected discovery of a number of demos, live recordings and studio sessions, which let us hear Eva at her best. Such hitherto undiscovered pearls as “Take My Breath Away” would undoubtedly have found their way onto her million selling album “Songbird,” while tracks such as “Drowning In A Sea Of Love” let us hear that Eva could also work wonders with soulful material and a groovy band. Something that is certain to result in high chart positions worldwide.’
There's a review of AMERICAN TUNE on the Barnes and Noble website. Written by critic Roberta Penn, it says in part, 'Jazz, blues, and pop fans just can’t get enough of vocalist Eva Cassidy, who died in 1996 of cancer. Many of her posthumously released CDs have sold beyond anyone’s expectations, at times charting in several genres.... Cassidy doesn’t need to over-emote on “True Colors,” as Cyndi Lauper did with her version. Instead, she makes the love song build from a folk beginning to an enthralling plea for recognition and then returns to a quiet ending. With their powerful simplicity, Cassidy’s versions of “The Water Is Wide” and “Dark Eyed Molly” could have been sung by a young Joni Mitchell, while her take on the Billie Holiday signature tune “God Bless the Child” comes not so much from the blues of the original but more from the hippie pop of the '60s.... The real shocker is a bluesy rock version of soul singer Joe Simon’s 1971 hit “Drowning in the Sea of Love.” Here Cassidy lets loose without going over the top, enticing the listener with a deep pain that needs no hysterical enhancements. Her most special music, no matter its source, came straight from the heart. ' Thanks to Doug in Pennsylvania, who spotted this one.
August 1, 2003: The UK newspaper The Daily Mirror has a three-star review of AMERICAN TUNE today. It's a good review overall. Here are a few nice quotes: "Taking its title from Paul Simon's wounded Watergate-era hymn, American Tune is a moving and valuable document of an artist coming to grips with her craft." Also, "As ever the manner of Eva's passing adds a poignancy to the performances. Most notable is The Water Is Wide, a traditional American folk tune which she transforms into a startling song of endurance. It presents the key to her continued success - her musical life continues to triumph over death." By the way, Daily Mirror, it's Biondo, not Biondi, and the person who put the album together was Bill Straw of Blix Street Records. Never mind. **UPDATE: Andrew at Hot Records sent me a scan of the article, which looks like quite a substantial one, with a bunch of photos. The headline reads: "Gavin Martin is moved by a fitting tribute to the talents of a late, great American songstress."
Johan Bakker from Rotterdam has sent me a translation of the review he wrote last week for the Dutch National Daily Paper
Nederlands Dagblad. It was published July 25th, 2003. Here are some quotes: "She left a heritage for her friends and family consisting of a number of music tapes, which were discovered accidentally by the record industry. In this way she obtained the status of a star and reached a large audience with her hypnotizing voice that easily supplies tears and gooseflesh. That Eva’s person assumes legendary proportions can be read on the website that her cousin manages: http://www.evacassidy.org." Also, "'Drowning In The Sea Of Love,' which opens the cd, is very groovy, but without extravagance. 'God Bless The Child' was made well-known by Billie Holiday, with whom Eva’s voice can be compared qua intensity. Eva’s version is beautiful and restrained. Then we have the fine title track 'American Tune.' Paul Simon wrote it with The St. Mathew Passion still in his head. " Thanks, Johan!
Blake in the US writes, 'In the current issue of Entertainment Weekly magazine (Aug. 8) in the music section on page 75 under "The Chart" under the subheading "In Stores August 12": EVA CASSIDY: American Tune (Blix Street) Folk-jazz singer
Cassidy, who succumbed to cancer in 1996 at age 33, had a gift for interpretation
that continues to earn her fans worldwide. This CD includes her cover of the
Beatles 'Yesterday.'"' Thanks, Blake! I hope they do a fuller review later.
Amazon.com now has a brief review and sound clips for AMERICAN TUNE. "Eva Cassidy fans surely feel something akin to relief when another cache of tapes is opened for release. The singer's 1996 death at the age of 33, after all, rendered her output finite in the saddest and most frustrating way.... She'd no doubt be pleased to know that tracks uncovered at this point now sound like, well, notes from a missed, much-loved friend." The critic is Rickey Wright. Thanks to Fred for alerting me to this new review.
Another terrific review from the Netherlands! This one is by Tom van Rijswijk, writing for the Haagsche Courant. Koos sent me a translation. Here are some quotes: "Do we need the eight hundredth version of the song ‘Yesterday’? Yes, we do - if it is Eva Cassidy’s! It’s one of the pearls on her new cd ‘American Tune’, which carries a sticker emphasizing that ‘these recordings have never been released before’.... It is amazing that this recording in particular remained on the shelves for so long. ‘Yesterday’ becomes a gospel in Eva’s interpretation. It is so intensely sung that it takes your breath away. Paul McCartney for sure has never heard his composition executed so beautifully."
RAVE REVIEW: I'm excited about this four-star review from the important "All Music Guide." Critic Jonathan Widran writes, 'The fun part of any new Cassidy hodgepodge is pegging the many genres she draws from, almost as if she's thumbing her nose at the record execs who wouldn't sign her because she refused to limit herself to any one style. There's the soul-funk drama of “Drowning in the Sea of Love," the gentle acoustic guitar hymn “The Water is Wide," and a lively rendition of Ray Charles' “Hallelujah I Love (Him) So." The introspective Paul Simon tune the album is named for is given a gently powerful reading, but lacks the eye-popping emotional power she gives to “God Bless the Child" and “Yesterday," songs we might think we'd heard quite enough versions of. The set closes with the plaintive love song “You Take My Breath Away," well known to folks today from Tuck & Patti's version. Based on the ongoing discovery of more tunes Cassidy no doubt never thought would see the light of day, we can only hope that there are more trunks full of tapes waiting to be mastered and released.' Additionally, I just discovered that the "All Music Guide" lists Billboard chart positions also. Thanks to Doug in Pennsylvania for finding this one.
The August 2, 2003, issue of Music Week has a nice review of AMERICAN TUNE: "Her interpretation of folk standards such as 'The Water is Wide' and 'Dark Eyed Molly' resonate with the fabled Cassidy magic." [sic]
The Sunday Mercury on August 3rd wrote "How much more material can there be? Doubtless inspired by the No. 1 success of IMAGINE, here's a bunch of lost tapes and live recordings, warts and all. Surprisingly they're better than the rest of the Cassidy catalogue, especially when she fronts a band on soul standard 'Drowning In The Sea Of Love'...." The critic is Paul Cole.
August 2003: Henrik in Denmark spotted a review in the Sunday Post which I presume is a UK paper: Kevin Bridges, their critic, writes "She positively soars on sungs such as 'God Bless the Child' and 'True Colours,' and even a hoary old chestnut like 'Yesterday' is made to sound fresh and moving by her unique interpretation.
Thursday, August 7, 2003: Quick update (many thanks to Andrew Bowles of Hot Records for all this information): In the UK, look for an excellent "five star" review of AMERICAN TUNE in the Daily Record today (Thursday). Listing AMERICAN TUNE as their "album of the week," the Daily Record wrote "Simply stunning and never disappointing, these tracks send a shiver down the spine and warm the soul."
More reviews, courtesy of Jim at Hot Records, my new hero: A publication called Attitude is definitely quotable, with critic Adam Mattera writing "A rare treat: a CD you can play straight through and never need the skip button. If you know Cassidy you'll know exactly what to expect, and there are no surprises here, just a great selection of songs beautifully sung.... Simply beautiful." It's in the August issue. I love their Attitude, don't you?
The August 15th issue of Entertainment Weekly has a good review of AMERICAN TUNE on page 77. "With a honeyed voice and not a drop of guile, Cassidy crafted singular interpretations of even wearily familiar songs. We may have lost this unapologetically uncommercial artist to cancer in 1996 (she was only
33), but her gifts carry on in posthumously released CDs like the
winning 'American Tune'.
Todd writes, 'On the Media Mix page of the Washington Post's Sunday Source for Aug 10, American Tune is described as "Another moving collection from the late, great Bowie native," and is rated A-.' I think a critic from the Post may be doing a more extensive review and article later.
Here's another UK review courtesy of Jim at Hot Records. The critic for the Cambrian News, Norman Williams, wrote this review for the August 7th issue: "It is a CD that I expect to repeat the success of her SONGBIRD and IMAGINE albums. ...'The Water is Wide' is a good example of how Eva can take an old song and give it a touch of magic."
Tim sent me a scan of the article from the Melbourne Herald Sun. The headline is "Eva After," with the subtitle "Eva Cassidy dreaded being famous. Today, seven years after her death, she is. Nui Te Koha reports." If you are in a part of the world where you can obtain a copy of this paper, you definitely should seek it out! It's the August 9, 2003, issue. Most of the article is an interview with Eva's best friend Ruth Murphy.
Jim at Hot Records sent me scans of nice reviews from such papers as the South Wales Echo, the Western Mail, and the Birmingham Evening Mail. Here's the entirety of the two-sentence review from the latter: "Eva's not with us anymore, but her magic lives on, although we are now having to make do with rehearsal, demo, and in-concert performances. Considering that most of these ten tracks were completed in one take, the standard is remarkable." Thanks, Jim, keep them coming! Reviewers, I know you love to quote Oliver Cromwell, but is it strictly necessary for so many of you to work in the phrase "warts and all"? Warts, harrumph.
This review is in the Manchester On Line website. Thanks to Doug in Pennsylvania for finding it. "It is credit to Chris Biondo that these informal recordings sound as good as they do, but more credit to Cassidy that she turned in such sublime performances even in the rehearsal room." Four stars out of five. **UPDATE: Gary says this same review was in the Manchester Evening News on Friday. The critic is Paul Taylor.
Aug. 17th: There is a brief review in the Denver Post today. I expect we'll be seeing more reviews in the US papers over the next couple of weeks.
The Telegraph printed this review by Ben Thompson: "Having registered almost six million album sales in the past two years - despite the fact that when she died of cancer in 1996, this direct, unfussy, Washington DC singer had yet to release her first solo record - Eva Cassidy's is the most remarkable posthumous career trajectory in pop music history." Wait a minute, what about LIVE AT BLUES ALLEY, Ben? It was a solo album released in Eva's lifetime! (He didn't like the AT version of "God Bless the Child" -- well, he has a right to his opinion.)
The Norwegian Aftenposten published an interview with Chris Biondo this week by Henrik Width. A different Henrik has translated the interview, and here is a quote: "Biondo thinks there are several reasons why he is traveling around marketing the music of a deceased girlfriend.- This is something I really believe in; I have never heard anyone sing so well in my life.
Another answer is that this is one of the nicest things to talk about, beautiful music that is good for people. When he is not talking about Eva, Biondo is a composer producing music for wildlife programs for the Discovery Channel and National Geographic." The article has a nice photo of Chris which you can see by following the link, even if you don't read Norwegian.
IT'S OFFICIAL: For the third time, Eva Cassidy has the #1 hit album in the United Kingdom! This is a very exciting day. Thanks to everybody for your joyful messages! (Oh, and on the UK "Indie" charts, AMERICAN TUNE is #2, SONGBIRD is #10, IMAGINE is #21, TIME AFTER TIME is #23, LIVE AT BLUES ALLEY is #26, and EVA BY HEART is #31.)
"Cassidy Returns to Number One," reads the headline of an article on the BBC website.
A SAMPLING OF UK REPORTS: "Cassidy at One," says a brief article at the pop music website Dotmusic.com. "Cassidy Takes Album Chart Top Spot," says the Irish Examiner and a bunch of other papers -- must be some kind of wire service report. I've seen a lot of other quick mentions, mostly noting that Eva knocked Robbie Williams off the top spot. Those of us in the United States have probably never heard of Robbie Williams, but he is a major star elsewhere!
The first US acknowledgement of the UK charts is on Billboard.com today. The headline is "Cantrell, Cassidy Maintain U.K. Chart Control" and the article states, 'Meanwhile, there was a third posthumous No. 1 album for the late Eva Cassidy with "American Tune" (Blix St/Hot), a new collection of previously unreleased recordings. Prior Cassidy albums "Songbird" and "Imagine" went to No. 1 in March 2001 and August 2002, respectively.' Thanks to Bill C. for this link! **UPDATE: Reuters seems to have distributed this story widely.
Michelle just e-mailed me to say, "There was a great article on the main UK news informing that Eva was number 1 in the UK album charts and had even knocked Robbie
Williams, who is huge over here, off the top spot. Isn't that fantastic news
but, of course, not surprising! When it gets on the main news you know it's
big! They showed a clip of her playing probably at Blues Alley on an
amateur video." Charlie adds, "Included a short
interview with Chris, who was saying that, were Eva alive, she would be
even bigger, and doing some 'amazing' recording. It lasted around 2 min.s
before trailing off onto obligatory 'dead rock stars' angle with clips of
Elvis, Hendrix, Cobain (yawn). Included the fact that AT has sold over 200,000 copies in the first week."
Jenny in the UK sent me this digital snap of the "Ceefax" screen, which seems to be some sort of text news on television. In case the print is too small to read, it give the date of August 17, 2003, and the headline reads "New Cassidy Collection Tops UK Chart." Cool!
***** Here's a five-star review from the "This is York" website, written by Tony McKinstry. "EVA of the heavenly voice is back... from the dead with yet another ten previously-unreleased cover versions." I wonder if this might have appeared in any of the York local papers?
Music sites worldwide are mentioning Eva's third trip to the top of the UK charts. This one, which Doug found, is from Spain, and states "Eva Cassidy reina en las listas tras siete años de su muerte" (presumably something along the lines of "Eva Cassidy is top of the charts seven years after her death").
August 21, 2003: Updated Chart news from the debut week for AMERICAN TUNE: As we all know, the album opened at #1 in the United Kingdom. In Australia, #17, and in Ireland #32. Paul in Wales reports that AMERICAN TUNE is #1 in the Welsh charts maintained by the BBC. Visits to this website have been up by over 50% this week. **UPDATE: In the United States, the Billboard charts show AMERICAN TUNE is #5 on their Internet Sales chart, and #113 in their "Hot 200" album chart. The album enters their Indie chart at #4. In Switzerland, AMERICAN TUNE is #82.
This is another interview with Chris Biondo, from a Norwegian magazine. Veronica Karlsen did the interview with Chris. It has my favorite photo of Eva, which... hmmm... could only have come from my website. I wish we knew who the photographer was, because he probably has a file of other photos from that session, and doesn't realize how valuable it is!
Tuesday, August 19: "EVA SO GOOD TO BE NUMBER ONE," reads the headline. There's an article about Eva in the Sun today. It's a lovely article, go read it and print it out, because I've been warned that this paper doesn't keep articles on its website for long. Pat says the Sun is "the MEGA selling daily paper here..." I've got to quibble a bit here -- Eva was born in 1963, not 1953. The group photo is NOT of "Eva's band" -- the friends in the photo with Eva are Chris Izzi, Larry Melton, and Joe Knaggs. I LOVE that photo of Eva's parents in front of the BBC building. I detest that photo of Eva playing the guitar, she looks like Sally Struthers, which she did NOT in real life.
Sunday, August 23, 2003: Congratulations, everybody -- Eva Cassidy's AMERICAN TUNE is #1 in the United Kingdom for a second week! In Australia, Eva moved up one spot to 16. In Sweden, the album is #11. In Ireland, #15. The much-reprinted wire service report states, "In the Album charts Eva Cassidy, the artist who died almost seven years ago from cancer, kept hold of top spot with AMERICAN TUNE. Her fourth posthumous album brings together five new songs taken from rehearsal tapes, live recordings, and a studio demo." **UPDATE: Sharon in Perth says that SONGBIRD is back on the Australian charts also, at #42. This must be a response to the television documentary which was broadcast last weekend. **UPDATED AGAIN: It continues as #1 on the Welsh chart, and #17 in Norway.
From Reuters/Billboard: 'The posthumous success story of Eva Cassidy continues, as a collection of unearthed recordings bows at No. 112. It marks her third entry on the Billboard 200. Two other sets appeared on Top Pop Catalog, including "Songbird," which led that list for nine weeks. "Songbird," the biggest of Cassidy's albums with a Nielsen SoundScan total to date of 793,000 copies, was her first album to appear on a Billboard chart. It bowed on the catalog list in the issue dated April 7, 2001, five years after she died of cancer.'
The August 30th issue of Billboard has a good review of AMERICAN TUNE. Thanks to Bill for the link. The review, written by "JB," says: 'This latest set, which features six cuts discovered after the release of last year's "Imagine," again displays Cassidy's facility with varied pop music genres.... The Paul Simon title cut and the traditional folk gem "The Water Is Wide" feature Cassidy with only acoustic guitar backing. Truly, not much else was ever needed.'
AMERICAN TUNE is the "CD choice" for Hello Magazine this week, the issue dated September 2, 2003. They have a short description, not really a review.
REVIEWS -- a comment: I have seen many, many reviews of AMERICAN TUNE from all over the world. (Thanks to everybody who has been finding them and sending them to me.) The vast majority of the reviews have been very favorable! Here and there, however, I have been sent reviews that were not as glowing as one might wish, usually accompanied by indignant rebuttal messages from a devoted fan. Yeah, they get me mad too, but I'd like to offer a few thoughts. First, music critics are human beings and they are entitled to their opinions. We all are, on a one-person, one-opinion basis. Second, newspapers and magazines sometimes like to publish something provoking to cause a controversy, inspire a flurry of letters, and generally get themselves attention. Third, remember that the major corporations spend a lot of money advertising in these publications. The big record companies feel very threatened when they see a success on the scale of Eva Cassidy coming from a tiny, tiny record company. (Do you think EMI was happy about Eva displacing Robbie Williams at the top of the UK album charts?) In an ideal world, advertising and reviews (and broadcasting choices) would be 100% separate. But this is not an ideal world, and when radio stations and newspapers and magazines are under the same corporate umbrellas as record companies, why then... "Hmmm," the editor might think, "I think I'll get so-and-so to review this Eva Cassidy album, not what's-his-name who gave the last Eva album such a rave. So-and-so doesn't really like female vocalists, and besides, he's in a bad mood this week."
Any music critics or editors out there want to tell me this doesn't happen? Ever? Anywhere? **UPDATE: Nobody responded to this....
Updated September 4, 2003: AMERICAN TUNE is #2 on the UK album chart this week, after occupying the top spot for two weeks. The album is #7 this week in Sweden and #18 in Ireland. In Norway, it is #33.
September, 2003 (the next week): In the UK, AMERICAN TUNE is #3 this week on the album chart. This makes four consecutive weeks in the top three, since it was #1 for two weeks and #2 last week. Gerard in Ireland reports that the album is #38 in Ireland.
September 4, 2003: Here's a review from TownOnline.com that Henrik found. The reviewer is Josh Wardrup. 'On this disc, Cassidy moves from a bluesy belter on "Drowning in the Sea of Love," to a soothing weaver of Celtic folk on "Dark Eyed Molly," to a plaintive songstress on Cyndi Lauper's "True Colors" without missing a beat.'
September 15, 2003: In the UK, AMERICAN TUNE is #4 this week on the album chart. This makes five consecutive weeks in the top four. Go Eva!
Henrik in Denmark writes, 'Finally some good AT news from Denmark. Finn Smed Salholdt (who else?) reviews it in Jyllands-Posten for September 15, 2003. Jyllands-Posten is one of our largest quality papers.' Here's an extract from Henrik's translation of the Salholdt review: 'The British and the Irish were the first, but subsequently the Americans, Australians and Norwegians among others have also become fully aware of the unique, clear and soulful voice of the deceased American singer Eva Cassidy. She died from cancer at 33 in 1996, unknown outside her local area. She left a lot of recordings which have only been salvaged from obscurity during the last four years. "American Tune" is a collection of evergreens that ranges far in terms of style, though its pop and jazz roots are particularly conspicuous. Hackneyed as these songs may be, Cassidy’s voice lends a distinctive character to them. The simple instrumentation and restrained production do her voice full justice.' Also, it is interesting to note that there is a new distributor for Eva Cassidy albums in Denmark, Kick Music, which Salholdt praises.
MOJO REVIEW: Critic Lucy O'Brien of Mojo reviews AMERICAN TUNE in the October 2003 edition of the music magazine. I'll expect to see this quote on posters before long: "As ever, Cassidy redefined the cover version, making each song her own."
September 21, 2003: David in Sydney reports that Sydney's Sunday Telegraph had an article about Eva in to day's paper, on page 110, written by Vincent Louegrove. "Nothing new but plenty of exposure as this publication has about 700,000 readers," David says. The headline is "Eva's Now Immortal" and the article discusses AMERICAN TUNE's fine showing on the UK album charts for the past several weeks. A few quotes of interest: "Most tracks on American Tune were recorded more than a decade ago, including her impeccable renditions of classic standards such as Billie Holiday's 'God Bless the Child' and Duke Ellington's 'It Don't Mean a Thing.'.... 'Hot Records and Blix Records were the only labels who listened to what Eva did,' Biondo told me exclusively this week. 'The big labels didn't have the time or the inclination.' Except for one song, all 10 tracks remain exactly as they were recorded: no editing, no overdubs, no added instruments, no technological adjustments to her voice.
The essence of Eva's genius is the timbre and crystaline clarity of her voice. Her voice remains immortal."
AMERICAN TUNE is #20 this week on the UK album charts. In other words, it's still selling very well indeed. I remember a few years ago, when SONGBIRD was first becoming popular in the UK. At first it was in the top 200, and how eagerly we waited in hopes that it would make the top 75, which are published. Such joy when that happened! Nowadays sometimes it seems that nothing but "number one" will do. But we've had that "number one" status now for three albums, for (I think this is right) a total of six weeks. Incredible.
Late September, 2003: Also from the UK -- Hot Records have been sending me lots of great stuff via e-mail -- the UK Press Association has now reviewed the "You Take My Breath Away" single and we can expect to see this review in up to 200 regional papers in the UK. "Eva Cassidy must be one of the only solo artists to have more than two posthumous number ones. A virtual unknown before her tragically early death, she has gone on to huge success, scoring three number one UK albums in succession - Songbird, Imagine and the current American Tune. Taken from American Tune, You Take My Breath Away features Eva's haunting vocals on this beautiful song. " I don't know who the critic is.
In the UK this week (last week in September, 2003), AMERICAN TUNE is on the album charts for the seventh week. The current ranking is #35.
October 2003: AMERICAN TUNE is still on the British charts after 9 weeks, at #48 this week.
Nov. 2003: Glynne writes that there is a "WHSpecial album review" in the W H Smith Christmas gift guide, on page 81. Let's hope it inspires people to buy some of Eva's cds as Christmas gifts." She sent me a scan -- a very nice review, saying that AMERICAN TUNE is "a moving and lasting tribute to an exceptionally gifted artist."
I rather like this review of AMERICAN TUNE from the soundstage.com website. The site's special focus is audio quality, but they have not lost sight of what's most important: "But even with these sonic shortcomings, Eva Cassidy’s intangible appeal is still present.... Some cynics might view yet another Eva Cassidy compilation album as exploiting the late singer’s popularity, but she has many fans who cannot get enough of her special talent." Sometimes, though, I wonder (this is Laura speaking) whether the "power of suggestion" has caused some of the complaints about the sound quality of some of the tracks on AMERICAN TUNE. What if the record company had claimed that the songs came from a newly-discovered state-of-the-art studio master tape? Would we be hearing praise for the remarkable clarity of the ambiance? In John Culshaw's book Ring Resounding the author discusses the media reaction to Decca's famous recording of Das Rheingold. Apparently Culshaw had claimed in the press release that a remarkable audio effect could be heard during the "rainbow bridge" section of the opera, so that the voice could be heard coming from UNDER the bridge. According to Culshaw, several of the reviewers cited this fascinating illusion as one of the great achievements of the recording, but it was all nonsense. (I think I have this story right.) Have any of the audiophiles heard the fabled "furnace noises" (see the fiendishly difficult brand new "Eva Cassidy Listener's Quiz").
Henrik in Denmark (webmaster of the excellent new lyrics site Eva Songs) sent me the following: "Here is a brief Danish AT review in translation. It appeared in the regional newspaper Midthimmerlands Folkeblad, November 5, 2003: 'What a pity Eva Cassidy died from cancer only thirty-three years old in 1996. On the album “American Tune” - named after an old Paul Simon hit - producer Chris Biondo has gathered a string of excellent, previously unreleased tracks which they just managed to record before the American singer’s life was taken by cancer. The album includes a wonderfully intense version of the old Beatles classic “Yesterday” with her brother Dan playing a sentimental violin. And there are also brilliant versions of Ray Charles’s “Hallelujah, I love him so”, Duke Ellington’s “It don’t mean a thing” and many, many other wonderful melodies sung by a vocalist who had something to express.”'
Scott from the Yahoo Group reported the results of a search on the Folk DJ's website, Folkradio.org. According to the 2003 list compiled by Richard Gillmann, based on 161917 airplays from 207 different DJs, AMERICAN TUNE ranked #157 and IMAGINE ranked #209. Eva ranked #37 on the "Top Artists of 2003" list.
Early January BILLBOARD STATS: Bill in Pennsylvania writes, "American Tune is back in Billboard's top 20 Independent Albums at number 18 (after falling to 32 in the previous week). I'm not sure if that counted sales after the Nightline broadcast or not."
Mid-January BILLBOARD STATS: Bill and Don both e-mailed me about Eva's current rankings on the Billboard charts. Probably they remember my complaints about the Billboard.com website crashing my browser -- thanks, guys! The good news is that SONGBIRD is #16 in the Internet Sales chart and AMERICAN TUNE is #16 in the Independent chart. (I *think* I have that correct.)
Here is a German review (in German) of AMERICAN TUNE on the "Home-Of-Rock, Das Rockmagazin" website. Henrik translated a couple of excerpts for us: “Eva Cassidy thus once again affords proof that there is certainly an audience for hand-made, honest and simple music, be it blues, jazz, gospel or folk.” Also, “Cassidy’s voice succeeds most convincingly and with the highest degree of intensity in the interpretation of folk songs. Songs like 'The water is wide,' 'Dark Eyed Molly' and 'You take my breath away' caress the soul most touchingly. The uncluttered sound, mostly pared down to just a couple of guitars, allows Eva to focus on the emotion inherent in these lyrics with a spiritual coloring. If you fall here, she will certainly catch you. Truly enchanting, tender, yet forceful. In the jazzy-bluesy numbers she is also convincing with a style of singing in the school of the black soul ladies and an amazing timbre.”
Want to know more? Visit the main AMERICAN TUNE page to read an overview and an interview with Keith Grimes, who discovered "buried treasure" in his basement. On AMERICAN TUNE page two, graphic designer Eileen White discusses her discovery of the photos and drawings used in the album's design. Page three contains a song-by-song description of the album.
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Copyright 2003, 2004 - Laura Claire Bligh. All rights reserved.