Abandoned Garden

Michael Franks | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 26, 1995)
• Original Release Date: September 26, 1995
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Warner Bros / Wea
• ASIN: B000002N1D
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #14,395 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

No Description Available
No Track Information Available
Media Type: CD
Artist: FRANKS,MICHAEL
Title: ABANDONED GARDEN
Street Release Date: 09/26/1995
Domestic
Genre: JAZZ VOCALS

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars MICHAEL FRANKS' BEST ALBUM, December 30, 2003

By 

"bispro" (France) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Abandoned Garden (Audio CD)

Full of delicate melodies, intricate lyrics, mellow singing and nostalgia, this album is a must. Being a Michael Franks fan for many years, I haven't heard any of his other projects that satisfies me more than this.

Unlike the usual blend of uptempo stuff and slower, more relaxed tracks (of which 'Dragonfly Summer' is certainly the best example), this collection of songs displays a rare unity of sound and purpose, with the ghost of Antonio Carlos ("Tom") Jobim (his recently-lost friend to whom he dedicated the opus), haunting the whole album.

Don't get me wrong though, this album is everything but sad and morbid; just like bossa, I'd describe it as 'joyous sadness'. Michael and Tom's co-penned song "Cinema" is an instant classic; "Hourglass" is a beautiful personification of time as a woman, while "Abandoned Garden", the closing tribute song to the friend and master, will easily bring tears to your eyes if you let yourself be touched by its words and atmosphere.

I often regret that some of my prefered artists are not very well known by the general public, but in the case of Michael Franks, I'm glad, because he can go on enchanting us by just being himself: the coolest poet of jazz.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Classic Franks, December 1, 2002

By 

Thomas L. Bennett (Indented Head, Victoria Australia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Abandoned Garden (Audio CD)

The Michael Franks repertoire is typically cool, hip and sexy-smart.

His music is from an elegant genre of uptown jazz laced with the subtle nuances of Jobim's Brazil.

There are no jagged edges here.

There's intimacy, emotion and a soft observational quality coupled to a melody line that is simultaneously familiar and fresh.

His songs are intelligent, but never degenerate into being "clever".

On "Abandoned Garden" Franks morns the loss of his mentor, friend and hero Antonio Carlos Jobim. The influence of that great man from Rio has been evident throughout Franks' career.

The songs here are slightly more reflective than on previous Franks' offerings but every bit as stylish, classy and intelligent.

Quite a talent this Michael Franks!

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Michael's Swan Song For Warner Brothers, November 16, 2002

By 

James Fenos "music freak" (Columbus, OH United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Abandoned Garden (Audio CD)

I love this album, from the very first note on the opening track to the fade out on the final song, this album for me is second to "Sleeping Gypsy." Michael makes a full return to accoustic music, complete with strings and Brazilian arrangements. This album, released after Michael completed a two year break, was recorded as a tribute for his hero and friend Antionio Carlos Jobim. Jobim would be proud of this body of work.

"Somehow Our Love Survives" was written with Joe Sample a few years back and included on an album by Joe, sung not by Michael, but by Al Jarreau. It's updated here a bit and takes a different feeling as sung by the author. "In The Yellow House" is a song from Michael's play "Noa Noa." It's a duet, a conversation between Vincent Van Gogh and Paul Gaguin. Sadness abounds here, Michael seems distant but his lyric is still so poetic, for lack of a better term. This album, which might be another indicator of the distance, is the last studio album from Michael for Warner Brothers.