Saturday, January 10, 2009

A Cappella Gershwin

My old college friend Rich recommended this album to me when I had an earlier post about Glad. I only wish I could find a link that had more samples. Amazon appears to have no audio clips at all.

I got it for Eldest Daughter for a Christmas present, and in her jargon, "it's the bomb." (For all you old fogies like me out there, that's a compliment. I understand that "you are a total beast" is also a compliment.)

Anyway, it's excellent. Glad's top-notch musicianship is on display, as is what I read someone somewhere describing as "Ed Nalle's uncanny high tenor." Some of the pieces have words, some don't. Their vocal renditions of "American in Paris" and "Summertime" in the Gershwin medley are fantastic.

But my favorite was "Little Jazz Bird." I'd never heard it before and can't find a good Youtube or other on-line recording of it. Frankly, I can't stand these female jazz singers I find sort of simpering it out. Ick. But Glad does it straight up. If you should get the CD and hear the song, you'll have it going through your head and cheering you up for weeks. I recommend it.

4 comments:

Stuart Buck said...

Hey,

Glad! I still remember hearing them as a young teenager in the 1980s, and being just wowed.

There are several clips on YouTube; see this and the related videos:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9AoELpPryk



Imeem seems to have about a hundred Glad clips, although I haven't browsed through and checked: http://www.imeem.com/tag/?q=artist:Glad&f=music

You can buy MP3s of Glad from Amazon. One early album is here: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001KVGKRA/ref=sr_f2_album_1?ie=UTF8&child=B001KVCGTG&qid=1231732839&sr=102-1

And as for that arrangement of A Mighty Fortress, here's a group of select guys from the University of Georgia Men's Glee Club doing that whole arrangement live (it has 12 parts). I was in the Glee Club, but not in the select group. http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7143033614851487562&ei=Qr9qSd73OISM-QG0zbjQDg&q=accidentals+mighty+fortress The high tenor had a great voice, but he went into psychiatry (so I heard).

Stuart Buck said...

Trying again with active links:

Glad! I still remember hearing them as a young teenager in the 1980s, and being just wowed.

There are several clips on YouTube; see this and the related videos.

Imeem seems to have about a hundred Glad clips, although I haven't browsed through and checked.


You can buy MP3s of Glad from Amazon. One early album is here.

And as for that arrangement of A Mighty Fortress, here's a group of select guys from the University of Georgia Men's Glee Club doing that whole arrangement live (it has 12 parts). I was in the Glee Club, but not in the select group. The high tenor had a great voice, but he went into psychiatry (so I heard).

Stuart Buck said...

Also, I always like Glad's Variations on a Hymn. Album version here, and live video here.

Lydia McGrew said...

Stuart, I assumed this particular one ("Little Jazz Bird") wouldn't be on imeem, and I was wrong. There it is. Just a tiny bit cut off at the end. I'm posting it above. You get a HT. Thanks! Now I have to see what other Gershwin ones they have on imeem.

I have their exceedingly fun "You Put this Love in My Heart" Youtube in an earlier post as well as "Just As I Am." You can look at my "songs" posts to find the couple others of theirs I have from Youtube.