Over the Hills

Lucy Kaplansky | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 13, 2007)
• Original Release Date: 2006
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Red House
• ASIN: B000MM1F3C
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #79,307 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Though the strength of her songwriting has distinguished previous releases by folk troubadour Lucy Kaplansky, here she covers a wide range of material, from "More Than This" by Roxy Music's Bryan Ferry and Johnny Cash's classic "Ring of Fire" (written by his wife June) to Loudon Wainwright III's idyllic "The Swimming Song" and Ian Tyson's "Someday Soon" (a '60s hit for Judy Collins). What's as surprising as the song choices is that Kaplansky makes so much of the material sound so much the same, as if she isn't as emotionally invested in it as she is in her own writing. An exception is her duet with Buddy Miller on "Somewhere Trouble Don't Go," written by Buddy's wife, Julie. Kaplansky receives stellar support from Larry Campbell (formerly with Bob Dylan) on slide and steel guitars, and harmonies from Jonatha Brooke, Eliza Gilkyson, and Richard Shindell. Yet "Today's the Day," a song about the death of Kaplansky's father, with minimal musical backing, is the most compelling performance here. --Don McLeese

Product Description

Over the Hills is the most personal recording to date by New York City singer-songwriter Lucy Kaplansky and certainly the most accomplished and realized album in her remarkable catalog. Rediscovering her musical roots, Lucy returns to a more acoustic sound that is influenced by the music she first fell in love with--folk and classic country.

The release contains a stunning range of material, from stories about family--those that have gone before and follow after, of lives lived and roads traveled--to a compelling collection of classic songs by other writers, performed with Lucy's distinctive interpretive sensibility. Over the Hills is Lucy's story and her reflection upon her times, connecting to universal themes of love, joy, loss and dreams for the future.

With two major losses in her life this past year--her father Irving Kaplansky and mentor Red House president Bob Feldman--Lucy (along with co-writer/husband Richard Litvin) was inspired to write title track "Over the Hills." Encompassing the themes of the album, it reflects upon the connections between generations and the journey we all make beyond the world of our parents. From the album's opening song "Manhattan Moon" about her joy in motherhood to "Today's the Day" about saying goodbye to her dying father, Lucy's new songs are utterly personal and deeply moving.

Produced by Ben Wittman (Roseanne Cash, Paul Simon), Over the Hills features a world class band of Larry Campbell (Bob Dylan Band, Elvis Costello, Emmylou Harris), Jon Herington (Steely Dan), Duke Levine (Mary Chapin Carpenter), and noted jazz bassist Stephan Crump. Lucy is also joined by a parade of friends, who lend their vocal harmonies--Eliza Gilkyson, Buddy Miller, Richard Shindell and Jonathan Brooke.

From the New York skyline to the hills beyond, Over The Hills is pure Americana, wonderfully raw and rich with heartache and hope.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Modest yet stirring, March 18, 2007

By 

David T. Steere, Jr. (Annapolis, MD United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Over the Hills (Audio CD)

The Amazon reviewer is quite mistaken. OVER THE HILLS is a compelling album throughout. Although perhaps a bit more modest in ambition than her 9/11-themed previous recording--the great RED THREAD--this one's excellence derives from its smaller scale. Lucy has always been a personal singer--often delivering as if into your own ear alone--and she continues that feeling in OVER THE HILLS. The superb original compositions are largely about her family: her recently deceased father, her daughter (now and in the future) and her grandfather. Lucy has added such charm and twinkle to a well-chosen group of covers that they become new again: especially "Someday Soon," "Swimming Song," and "Ring of Fire." In addition to her first rate group of instrumentalists, Lucy has made terrific use of Eliza Gilkyson, Richard Shindell and Jonatha Brooke for harmony singers. If the Amazon reviewer thinks all the songs sound alike, he should listen a bit more carefully. They don't. OVER THE HILLS is subtle and lovely.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Grows on you., May 6, 2007

By 

Dr. Philip J. Kinsler (Lyme, NH USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Over the Hills (Audio CD)

I originally felt lukewarm about this album. Lucy seemed more laid back and less invested in the music. and her singing less emotional, than in other albums. I felt and still feel her rendition of the famous Johnny Cash/June Carter tune 'Ring of Fire' is emotionless and essentially 'mailed in.'

However, there are two songs on the album that make me cry no matter where I am--this is sometimes dangerous while driving--but the song she wrote about her father's death and it being the time she finally let go of all the things he was not to her, and one about a poverty stricken grandfather from the old country who passed down only his voice, are so powerful and psychologically sensitive and incisive that this has slowly become a favorite album--when I have access to some tissues...

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Soul Touching, April 17, 2008

By 

William F. Alexander - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Over The Hills (MP3 Download)

I was listening to Yahoo Lauchcast several months ago when I first heard "Amelia". Lucy's voice was captivating and the story was moving. Later, I heard the song "Over the Hills" and knew that Lucy is a true folk talent. A few weeks later when I finally heard "The Gift", I was holding back tears (it wouldn't do for a grown man to cry). I had to buy this album. I hope this touches you as much as it touches me.