The Other Side

Chuck Brown, Eva Cassidy | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (December 12, 1995)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Liaison Records
• ASIN: B000005FN2
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (41 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,149 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #6 in Music > Indie Music > Folk > Singer Songwriters
  • #9 in Music > Indie Music > Jazz > General
  • #59 in Music > Folk > Contemporary Folk > Singer-Songwriters

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

106 of 108 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Incredible Debut Album, April 19, 2000

By 

Christopher Norbury (Owatonna, MN United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Other Side (Audio CD)

Grabbing you from the first notes of "Let the Good TimesRoll" and holding you until the last chord of the immortalrendition of "Over the Rainbow" and then some, this CD showcases the incredible talent of Eva Cassidy. Chuck Brown proves to be a perfect foil to Eva's sultry, haunting, wailing, bluesy alto voice. His gravelly bass/baritone reminds me a bit of the great Johnny Hartman, but with more of an edge. They seem to be a perfect match on all their duets and obviously had great chemistry and synergy. Their musicianship is outstanding and the arrangements are first rate. "Let the Good Times Roll" sets the stage for what is to come, swinging perfectly, both singers flexing their chops, getting your toes tapping right away with a terrfic horn arrangement in the background. One of several excellent duets, "You Don't Know Me" is a tender, wistful ballad. Eva and Chuck trade verses and phrases, never coming together until the very end. "I Could Have Told You So" gets back in a nicely grooved jazz big band setting. Eva shows that she can scat with the best of them- and my god, this is her first featured album! She sounds like she has been scatting with Ella Fitzgerald for decades. "Gee Baby, Ain't I Good To You" is a bluesy, "last call" type of tune. It's easy to imagine the two singers sitting around the piano in an intimate little club, just tossing this one off effortlessly. One of the joys of listening to Eva is hearing tunes where she sings backup vocals as well as lead. "Drown In My Own Tears" features Eva on backup vocals and here she sounds like a choir of angels floating on the clouds. There are several standards covered on this CD, including "The Shadow of Your Smile", "Fever", "You've Changed", all which are done very well, but the two standouts are "God Bless The Child" and "Over The Rainbow". WOW! Eva solos on both and these two alone are worth buying the CD for. Billie Holiday wrote, and up until now had sung the definitive version of, "Child". I love Billie Holiday's music, but she has given up her spot as premier interpreter of this song to Eva. She starts softly, gently; builds gradually, bending notes pefectly, singing the bluesiest notes at the right time, then shrieking, shouting, crying in agony as she bemoans the fate of the blessed child. A three minute master class in how to sing a bluesy ballad. The crowning masterpiece of this CD is "Over The Rainbow". I've discussed this tune in another review of Eva's music, but suffice it to say, musical perfection such as this comes along once or twice in a lifetime, if one is lucky. If Eva's music EVER gets heard by a wide enough audience, this will go down in history as THE definitive version of this song, and one of the great works of popular music ever recorded. So buy this CD and start spreading the word. It may be the best money you ever spent on music.

58 of 59 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What A Great Surprise, August 14, 2000

By 

J. Bransfield (Burlington, CT USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Other Side (Audio CD)

I bought this CD mostly because I really like Eva's other work - and what kick this is! On the surface this CD shouldn't work but somehow Brown's gravely voice works perfectly with Cassidy's pure tonality.

Even the mix of songs from straight-ahead jazz, to blues, to soul to old pop makes sense with these two. You could believe that Chuck and Eva just sat-in and played whatever came to mind.

Overall this would be a 4-star CD except for three incredible cuts - God Bless the Child, Dark End of the Street and Over the Rainbow. They are simply outstanding.

I can't help feeling that somewhere up in heaven, Judy Garland smiled when she heard Eva sing Over the Rainbow, punched her fist in the air and said, 'You Go Girl!"

29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fabulous, stylish duets by two legends of Washington, DC, October 5, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Other Side (Audio CD)

This was Eva Cassidy's first CD, and her collaboration with Chuck Brown was an artistic leap for both of them. Cassidy had been singing backup for other artists and Brown was known locally as the "Godfather of Go-Go" for his particular brand of danceable soul. They came together on this album of jazz standards, which would be an asset to any record collection.

Brown said in an interview (I think it was with the Washington Post) that he was thinking about the classic combination of Louis Armstrong and Peggy Lee, with the raspy-voiced, worldly man and the sweet-voiced, soulful woman into the perfect duo. This is the CD to put on when you've spread the bearskin rug in front of the crackling fire, and poured the wine. (Although for this particular purpose you might skip past the rollicking opening number, "Let the Good Times Roll.")

Some of the best romantic duets on "The Other Side" are "You've Changed," "Drown in My Own Tears," and "You Don't Know Me." Cassidy's fans will not want to miss her solo "God Bless the Child" which is simply mesmerizing, and if you haven't heard her famous "Over the Rainbow" (which is also found on the CD "Songbird") you're in for a treat.

Brown recently released a solo jazz CD called "Timeless," which he dedicated to Cassidy's memory.