Details
Track Listing
1. Arnold's Dead
2. Brain Dead
3. My Life Is Hell
4. Farewell
| Details | | Contributing artists: | Carla Bley, Michael Evans | | Distributor: | Universal Distribution | | Recording Type: | Studio | | Recording Mode: | Stereo | | SPAR Code: | n/a |
Album Notes
Personnel: Karen Mantler (vocals, harmonica, piano, organ, synthesizer, harmonium, glockenspiel); Scott Williams (vocals); Michael Evans (vocals, alto saxophone, whistle, vibraphone, drums, tabla, Indian bell, ankle bells, bean pod, percussion); Carla Bley (saxophone).
After an absence of half a decade, Karen Mantler returned with this somber song cycle in 1996. Where her first two albums (MY CAT ARNOLD, and KAREN MANTLER AND HER CAT ARNOLD GET THE FLUE) chronicled aspects of her life as well as her attachment to her cat, FAREWELL looks at the death of Arnold and her life without him.
After two albums with a band, this work was created just by Mantler and percussionist Michael Evans, and the smaller scale approach suits the subject. The two players' inventiveness is compelling. "Help Me" is a mournful tune centered on the harmonium with evocative percussion underscoring the mood. Mantler sings, with some input from Evans, who adds counterpoint to the character-driven narratives. The mood throughout is not unlike that created on many of the works by her mother, the composer Carla Bley.
Industry Reviews
...Maudlin and hilarious....she plays an excellent piano and harmonica, has a crisp, quirky voice that recalls Suzanne Vega...and writes wonderful tunes that recall the angular melodies of Kurt Weill...
Option (01/01/1997)
...Karen Mantler has a keen sense of song structure, and a dark affinity for minor keys...
JazzTimes (03/01/1997)
...Karen Mantler has a keen sense of song structure, and a dark affinity for minor keys...Option (1-2/97, p.95) - ...Maudlin and hilarious....she plays an excellent piano and harmonica, has a crisp, quirky voice that recalls Suzanne Vega...and writes wonderful tunes that recall the angular melodies of Kurt Weill...
JazzTimes (03/01/1997)
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