Great Voice Sabotaged by the Wrong Material
Sinead O'Connor took it on the chin, both critically and commercially, when she released this album of show tunes in 1992. While her voice is'nt the problem, these songs are simply not her forte. Sinead never gains command of most of the material and the big band that backs her is jarring. The are a couple of exceptions: the opening track, "Why Don't You Do Right" is familiar Sinead material (perhaps the quality of this song raised my expectations of the album) and her version of "Don't Cry for me Argentina" is superb - Sinead's lets her anger ebb and allows her vunerability to show. But the rest of the album never gels and borders on unlistenable. It took Sinead nearly a decade to recover from this mess.
If She's Not Your Girl, She Should Be!
I don't know who decided that this album would be a strong follow-up to "i do not want what i haven't got", but they made a terrible marketing mistake that will likely leave Sinead a one-album wonder. (Okay, okay, some of her antics likely had a hand in her decline in popularity, but I digress).This album is one of the most relaxing albums I have heard in a long time. Not afraid to stretch the range of her voice, O'Connor allows her voice to show vulnerability as well as passion. When I first saw the playlist I thought that she must have chosen this as a quick way to throw out an album after her commercial success, but her interpretation of these songs shows both practice and perseverance.
Once you start listening, you will first marvel that it is Sinead, then forget that it is and simply enjoy.
An accomplished performance
Put me with those who appreciate this atypical release from the controversial Sinead OfConnor. She has a truly extraordinary voice, which instantly adds interest to anything she does. However, she also does a very good job of interpreting these standards and show tunes in her own unique fashion. Sometimes her voice is breathy and intimate, and at others times she belts out her lines strongly. Her anger is not apparent here, but these are not angry songs, resulting in an unusually restrained and relaxing performance from this singular vocalist. I was fortunate enough to buy this disk while I was living in Japan; the Japanese release has three extra songs: gMy Heart Belongs to Daddy,h gAlmost in Your Arms,h and gFly Me to the Moon.h
Brave and impeccable. Essential listening
You may love or hate Sinead O'Connor but you have no choice when it comes to her voice: it's wonderful. Rich, sweet, tragic, and without flaw, it weeps, soars, swoons, and sweeps across these standards, bringing new life to "Don't Cry For Me Argentina" (in which she puts *all* other renditions to shame), "Black Coffee", and "I Wanna Be Loved By You". This is a true marvel of a record.
Why do you not own this album if you truly appreciate music
First of all, I'm a Sinead O'Conner fan.
Secondly, I love quality music of all genres and generations. There just has to be a better than average musician attached to it. I own Dizzy Gilespie, I own Man of War, I own Phish and I own Sinead O'conner.
Thirdly, I'm not here to ponder why she did her one and only cover album, why she used Showtune/Big Band inspiration, or what effect this album had on her career.
What I am here to say is this album is one of the best album's featuring a female vocalist of all time. It isn't one of my favorites, those titles go to Ani Difranco and Merrill Bainbridge (call me sick if you will) However, if your looking for quality music this is the CD to own. And it is the CD that showcases Sinead O'Conner as what she truly is. One of the true divas of the music industry. It's a wonder she didn't cover a gospel. But then she wouldn't be Sinead, would she?
