Customer Reviews

Come Rain Or Shine

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

This was the first Nancy Lamott album I purchased, after hearing her do "Moon River" live on the Charles Grodin show. A week later she was dead. Unfortunately, her recordings nearly suffered the same fate, apparently the result of legal problems surrounding her estate. I considered myself lucky to have latched on to them before they temporarily went out of circulation. They're back, but for how long? The combination of her luminous, crystal-clear voice, passionate yet intelligent interpretations, and Johnny Mercer's timeless musical poetry makes this album indispensable if not "urgent" for any serious collector of the art of American popular song. I would place it just slightly behind "My Foolish Heart" among the spare but priceless recordings she left behind.

American standards, intelligently delivered with well-thought-through arrangements. The highlight, for me, is one of the few recordings of both parts of "Hit the Road to Dreamland," as it was originally written for the movies. I wasn't familiar with the haunting "Whistling in the Dark" until I heard her sing it; it's wonderful. There isn't a bad cut on the CD. Her untimely death was a tragedy, but her voice and sense of style will live on in this must-have CD.

This was the first Nancy LaMott CD I bought, just on a whim. I got home and listened to the first track, "Moon River".......then I stopped the CD and heard that track again. And again. It was quite a while before I heard any more tracks, because that one just gripped me. That thrilling voice singing a song I thought I'd grown tired of. This recording inspired me to get all her other CDs and then to seek her out, in live performances in New York. Eventually I became friendly with her and ran her fan club. Nancy's untimely death was tragic, but sadder yet, sales of her CDs are being halted due to legal battles with the estate. I urge anyone who's discovered Nancy's CDs, her gifts to us all, to buy them all as long as they are still available.

In the winter of 1994, having been a Nancy Lamott fan for a number of years, I was thrilled to find out that she was appearing at a now long departed (and greatly lamented) cabaret atop the Bellvue Stratford Hotel in Philadelphia. It was a intimate room with great sound and no bad seats. I was lucky enough to get a table for my wife and me that placed us no more than 6 feet from the small stage. About halfway through the performance, Nancy asked for requests. I sheepishly blurted out, "How about the 'Autumn Leaves/When October Goes' medley". She gave me a knowing smile and then proceeded to quietly send the room to a place we had never been before. It was magical. Shortly thereafter, the performance ended and I waited a short time to thank Nancy as she spoke to some folks near the stage. Their conversation went on a bit longer than I expected and my wife and the rest of our party began to get impatient. So, I left without the chance to thank her. After all, I'd see her the next time she was in the area. Well, as we all know, there wouldn't be a next time. All too soon, she was gone. I'll always regret that small impatient moment. Please don't you let yourself regret this chance to hear a once in a lifetime talent. That magical medley is on this album. Before some idiot lets her recordings go out of print again or the "downloadistas" take over what's left of the recording business, buy this CD and every other one of hers you can get your hands on. She was touched by God and now she's with him. But a small echo of her essence remains in these recordings.

Many have tried to sing these old familiar songs; few have succeeded in doing so. Nancy achieved something that most could not: honest, informed, and thoughtful interpretation. She didn't change them; she made them better.

This is my first Nancy LaMott CD, and since I got it yesterday, I have played it over and over! What a beautiful voice! The entire album is top-notch.

Oh my gosh! Have I been under a rock? I got this CD as a gift from my daughter who bought it by mistake. I have listened to every track a hundred times and just now read that Nancy is dead. BUY THIS CD!!! she will draw you away from the pain of business or your husband making you crazy. she will take you to a cool club and you'll almost taste an icy martini while you listen to her incredible voice lull you into a better place. I am so sad she will not be singing anymore. I gotta get those other recordings and you will too!

"There is no more beautiful musical instrument than the voice of Nancy LaMott." ~ Bob Harrington, New York Post ~

Nancy LaMott's "Come Rain or Come Shine: The Songs of Johnny Mercer" is one of my all-time favorite recordings that I will wholeheartedly recommend not only to fans of LaMott and Mercer, but also to lovers of fine music who greatly appreciate exquisite singing. It is absolutely one of the best tributes ever recorded. She gives heartfelt and dramatically beautiful readings of some of the most loved lyrics of a high-caliber wordsmith and occasional singer from Savannah, Georgia, the late John Herndon Mercer, an Academy Award winner who had earned his perpetual star at the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his outstanding works. Ms. LaMott's love for Mercer music was greatly influenced by her father, whose band played a lot of songs from Mercer's catalogue.

The heart-stopping interpretations and wonderful arrangements are the results of collaborative talents of Nancy LaMott, producer David Friedman and pianist/arranger/director Chris Marlowe. Behind that powerful yet charming voice is the superb instrumentations of Ken Sebesky (guitar), Jay Leonhart (bass) and Chris Marlowe himself on piano, among others.

Listen closely with your undivided attention as she flawlessly shows off her exquisite vocal art singing two of my all-time favorite songs that Mercer co-wrote with a legendary composer, Henry Mancini -- "Moon River" done in the most beautiful setting accompanied only by the impressive piano playing of Chris Marlowe, and an emotional highlight -- a timeless gem of a song, "The Days of Wine And Roses" rendered in a medley with "Whistling Away The Dark."

She ends this enchanting presentation with "P.S. I Love You," a heartfelt and a perfect finale to this sublime tribute album. We love you, too, Nancy LaMott! Although you're no longer with us physically, your gorgeous music will continue to delight our ears and will eternally live in our hearts.

because only such a one could put into words how beautiful this woman's voice is. I heard her for the first time today, courtesy of WNYC. I immediately purchased the entire album. I am in awe and can not believe I have not heard her music before. These songs are not just versions of the same standards you've heard before; it will be as if you're hearing these songs for the first time. It is the greatest of tragedies that such a wonderfully gifted person was cut down so young. How thankful we can be that her legacy lives on in this beautiful music.

It does not seem possible that one could sing with greater confidence and conviction. Also, Lamott and her accompaniest Christopher Marlowe are a wonderful team, evincing taste, originality and willingness to make standard and not-so-standard songs their own. Her reading of "Autumn Leaves/I hate to see October Go" is heart rending. There is not a bad song on this album.