Customer Reviews

Doll

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is Keiko at her best.."Doll" rivals "Cherry Blossom" in its enchanting beauty. This is music that sets the imagination to flight and bids you to escape from the mundane daylight world. The arrangements are complex and satisfying, the melodies sinuous and magnetic and the recording quality excellent. Anyone who appreciates music with some substance should feel a bit cheated not having this album.

This CD is one of Keiko's best and that is saying something because they are all good. If you are her fan, then you must have this one. Every cut is super great, except, in my opinion, Funny Things. This cut, like many other songs of hers that contain lyrics, would be better omitted from the CD. On the other hand, this CD contains the best song with lyrics that I have heard of hers, Voice of the Heart. Bottom line is that Keiko is unbelievable, and this CD displays her talent at its best.

This is Keiko's best. The tracks are beautiful and reflect her best work yet.

This new-age/jazz fusion artist recorded this disc in the short-lived "Q-Sound" which psycho-acoustically presented a 3-D soundstage with a standard two speaker stereo system. Check out the opening of "1942, From Russia" you'll swear the cello was playing behind you. The Q-Sound is not overdone and is wisely mixed in at strategic points in each recording elevating the lush ambient sounds without detracting from Keiko's piano/keyboards.

The album is mostly instrumental featuring a variety of standard acoustical instruments such as sax and guitar as well as more strategically placed exotic ones such as the japanese koto.

A couple of the tracks have vocals with "Voice of the Heart" in particular benefiting from the Q-mix to achieve a Phil Spector-like "wall of sound."

For me, this is Keiko at her finest and peaks right with the first two tracks "Bronze Casting" and "Moroccan Ashes". If you are into smooth jazz, new age or enjoyed any of Keiko's other albums then this is a must have.

This is a stunning album that has it all--fire and ice, power and grace, stunning performances and fascinating, richly layered arrangements. Pianist Keiko Matsui is portrayed as quiet and unassuming in the cover photos, but boy does she come alive as a composer, brimming over with verve, passion, mystery and depth as she and a host of other musicians soar, pulse and groove their way through a variety of engaging instrumentals, with two vocal pieces thrown in for good measure. Matsui's compositions are jazz at its best--mature, interesting and ever-evolving in a swirl of interchanging leads and motifs. Many of the pieces have a driving, minor-keyed intensity to them that is very compelling, and quite a number of instruments contribute to the sound of this music, including bass, saxophone, electric and acoustic guitars, trumpet, trombone, cello, keyboards, programming, drums and a string quartet. And for a touch of the orient, there's even a koto, a shakuhachi and an occasional flirtation with the pentatonic scale. Personally, I could do without the singing, as it seems to water down the power of the instrumentals. However, the sensible lyrics are a refreshing change from the lust-dominated norm in this idiom. This 1994 album was followed by numerous other releases, including "Deep Blue," "Wildflower," and "White Owl," all in a similarly deft and powerful style. If you like the music of Keiko Matsui, you may also enjoy that of Peter White in "Glow."

This is the first CD I purchased from Keiko Matsui. I bought it my senior year of H.S. primarily for the tune "Water Lily". Believe me when I say the album does not disappoint. Each song is refreshing and an escape from that "ordinary" music played on pop stations. Give it a try.

This is not quite up to par for Keiko Matsui and a little heavy on the Kenny G style saxaphone for my liking. The vocal numbers were better than her other efforts using vocals. The piano she plays is usually amazing, but seemed pretty subdued and shoved to the background here. My 8yo piano playing daughter still likes it, but even she said it's not as good as some of her other work. If it weren't for my daughter listening to this, I'd resell.

This is a stunning album that has it all--fire and ice, power and grace, stunning performances and fascinating, richly layered arrangements. Pianist Keiko Matsui is portrayed as quiet and unassuming in the cover photos, but boy does she come alive as a composer, brimming over with verve, passion, mystery and depth as she and a host of other musicians soar, pulse and groove their way through a variety of engaging instrumentals, with two vocal pieces thrown in for good measure. Matsui's compositions are jazz at its best--mature, interesting and ever-evolving in a swirl of interchanging leads and motifs. Many of the pieces have a driving, minor-keyed intensity to them that is very compelling, and quite a number of instruments contribute to the sound of this music, including bass, saxophone, electric and acoustic guitars, trumpet, trombone, cello, keyboards, programming, drums and a string quartet. And for a touch of the orient, there's even a koto, a shakuhachi and an occasional flirtation with the pentatonic scale. Personally, I could do without the singing, as it seems to water down the power of the instrumentals. However, the sensible lyrics are a refreshing change from the lust-dominated norm in this idiom. This 1994 album was followed by numerous other releases, including "Deep Blue," "Wildflower," and "White Owl," all in a similarly deft and powerful style. If you like the music of Keiko Matsui, you may also enjoy that of Peter White in "Glow."

If you love Keiko's music - *get* *this* *album*.
This continues to be one of my favorites from Keiko.
As of 2006 I own 31 of her CD's including both the original and the Shout reissue 'Doll'. The title cut, track 3, has always been my favorite from this CD- a great intro and upbeat tempo that continues to build and develop throughout the track.
Only two cuts (from the oringinal 10) are less than 4 1/2 minutes. The Solo Piano tracks on the reissued Shout version of 'Doll' are an added bonus.
To my 'practiced ear' having listened to Keiko's music for years, the tracks on this CD flow very well from one to the next. Often, when i've finished playing this one, I want to play it again. (and maybe even a little louder...)
The first cut, 'Bronze Casting', can bring tears to my eyes when I listen as the sax plays counterpoint to the piano run.
If you love Keiko's music - *get* *this* *album*.