Let Them Talk

Hugh Laurie | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 6, 2011)
• Original Release Date: 2011
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Warner Bros.
• ASIN: B0055V6EZE
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Music
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (330 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #806 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #30 in Music > Rock > Blues Rock
  • #35 in Music > Blues

Track Listings

1. Saint James Infirmary

2. You Don t Know My Mind

3. Six Cold Feet

4. Buddy Bolden s Blues

5. Joshua Fit The Battle Of Jericho

6. After You ve Gone

7. Swanee River

8. The Whale Has Swallowed Me

9. John Henry

10. Police Dog Blues

11. Tipitina

12. Winin Boy Blues

13. They re Red Hot

14. Baby, Please Make A Change

15. Let Them Talk

Editorial Reviews

Hugh Laurie will release his debut album 'Let Them Talk' on Warner Bros. Records. A glorious celebration of New Orleans blues, 'Let Them Talk' unites Laurie's musical talent with a very personal selection of standards and lost blues classics performed with his band of renowned musicians and some very special guest stars. Produced by Joe Henry and recorded at sessions in Los Angeles and New Orleans, 'Let Them Talk' sees Laurie on vocals and piano heading a team of musicians whose previous collective credits include work with artists as varied as Greg Allman, Solomon Burke, Robert Plant, kd lang, T-Bone Burnett, Alison Krause and John Legend. Together, they interpret and revive songs originally recorded by NOLA blues legends such as Lead Belly, Robert Johnson, Ray Charles and Memphis Slim. 'Let Them Talk' also features collaborations with the Soul Queen of New Orleans Irma Thomas and Sir Tom Jones on the little known 'Baby, please Make A Change'. Thomas also leads the vocals on 'John Henry', while Laurie's lifelong hero Dr. John provides a momentous collaboration on 'After You've Gone'. Another legend, the producer, musician and songwriter Allen Toussaint, contributes horn arrangements throughout.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

167 of 169 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Laurie asks and answers the question, "Why listen to an actor's music?" September 9, 2011

By K. Corn TOP 100 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Audio CD

I was able to purchase this in a store before it was made available on Amazon. I have to admit that my expectations weren't high although I am a huge fan of Hugh Laurie. So I was surprised by the strong points of this one...and there ARE indeed some very solid aspects to this CD.

But first...the largest objection... Laurie's voice. Admittedly, it won't be to everyone's taste but I found it to have an emotional depth that surprised me. As Laurie himself notes in the liner notes, "why listen to an actor's music?" He doesn't pretend to be anything other than "a white, middle-class Englishman" one who is "openly trespassing on the music and myth of the American south." So there you have it. He clearly loves the music and is trying to share his pleasure with listeners. I think he succeeds.

But what about the music? As soon as I heard the intro to "St James Infirmary" I was hooked. The intro is deep and resonant, nicely arranged and conducted by Allen Toussaint. Whether you like Laurie's voice or not, the horn arrangements by Allen Toussaint on this CD (St James Infirmary, Tipitina and Buddy Bolden's Blues) are breath-taking.

Then there are special guests such as Irma Thomas, Dr. John, Brian "Breeze" Cayolle, and Sir Tom Jones. If for no other reason, their vocals, Toussaint's involvement, and Cayolle's sax playing make this one worth buying.

But I think Laurie himself is also worth purchasing the CD. He deserves credit for making a bold move and throwing himself wholeheartedly into this compilation. While other reviewers have complained about his voice, I don't find it distracting. There is so much more to the CD than just "an actor's music." Give it a try and see for yourself.

114 of 120 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars THREE REASON TO BUY THIS MUSIC September 7, 2011

By Andrew H. Lee

Format:Audio CD

Dear Music Appreciator,

Here are three reasons to buy this music:

1. You are the kind of music fan who has the patience to listen to a three minute instrumental before the vocals kick in (opening track "St. James Infirmary"). Perhaps you even enjoy the instrumental as much as the vocals, or maybe the delayed gratification on those vocals make them mean a little more when they do finally show up.

2. You have a thing for freaks, geeks, carnivals, New Orleans, nightclubs, jazz, blues, cool clarinets, sweltering saxophones, tinkling pianos heard over tinkling glasses and the kind of music that sounds best floating over a sea of little round tables with white tablecloths and smoke ring halos.

3. You enjoy traditional songs sung with bluesy, whiskey-soaked vocals from world-weary characters who've been around the block a time or two. And if the world weary-character that is singing also happens to play a world-weary doctor on a hit network television show that you`ve been known to enjoy, then so much the better.

Sincerely,

Constant Listener

84 of 90 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Should've known - he can do anything! June 4, 2011

By Deborah J Nicholson

Format:Audio CD

In school he was known as a world class jock. He started his professional life as a sketch comic, went on to comic acting and is now famous internationally as the misanthropic House in the dramatic show of that name. No one should be surprised that Hugh Laurie's also an amazing musician (okay, he showed flashes of this in all of his television series) and a talented, devoted singer of New Orleans style blues. So despite the track record of actors who decide to make albums, this one is worth your time.

The album starts out with a virtuoso piano solo leading into the haunting standard "St. James Infirmary", and it goes on to feature a wealth of blues treasures from the familiar ("Swanee River", "Battle of Jericho") to the more obscure ("Six Cold Feet" and the title track). Mr. Laurie is backed by a handful of quality New Orleans musical veterans and you'll also see several legendary names who've lent a hand: Allen Toussaint did horn arrangements on several tracks; and Irma Thomas, Sir Tom Jones and the one and only Doctor John each have featured vocals on a song with Mr. Laurie accompanying and provided back-up vocals.

If you're a fan of Robert Johnson, Jelly Roll Morton and Professor Longhair, you'll enjoy the fresh takes on their songs found here. And if you're a fan of Mr. Laurie, you'll see once again that this man can do whatever he sets his mind to.