Customer Reviews

Rhodes Songs

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

 

 

This is my favorite Happy Rhodes album.

Happy Rhodes, for folks who don't know, is a singer with an incredible vocal range. She sounds like two different people -- because in the same song, she can sing soprano, and then the deepest bass, sounding like two entirely different singers. You've never heard a range like this on a folk singer before!

Actually, she's not always a folk singer. But she is on this album, and to me, the purity of this album -- no synethesizers, just the artist -- is what makes it really outstanding.

She sings like a fairy on Wretches have gone Awry, and then like a ghost on Feed the Fire. This acoustic version of Save Our Souls is beyond haunting -- it's profoundly beautiful. And songs like I Have Learned will become intriguing companions on your daily commute to work.

To me, the simpler the music, the more this artist's genuine eccentricity and creative power come to light.

A distinctive and haunting addition to the singer/songwriter section of your music collection.

This CD is an assortment of songs from Equipoise and back. There are a few un-released tracks on it including an amazing acoustic cover of "Ashes to Ashes" (the gem). I was introduced to Happy's music through the Equipoise CD which I enjoyed so much I then purchased Warpaint. Rhodesongs helped me decide to continue and buy the earlier CD's because it let me hear a sampling of tracks from them. I agree with the other reviewer that this disc showcases mostly the softer side but the liner notes even mention this "...for the sake of continuity, all these selections depict the quieter side of an artist whose range is unbounded". Unbounded.. VERY TRUE. Now that I have all of Happy's recordings, Rhodesongs is still special because of the exclusive tracks on it. Tracks 5, 9, 10, 12, 15, and 16 are not available elsewhere.

I came to Happy Rhodes through hearing her on the public radio program "Echoes", and I promptly bought "Many Worlds Are Born Tonight" after falling in love with her voice. That album is definitely more electronic and 'complex' than this one, but that does not mean this one is a one-note throwaway. Who wants to hear an artist perform the same artist over and over? Rather, I think this albums acoustic quietness is a lovely showcase for a lovely voice. And there are some songs with electronic instrumentation as well for variety. This album deserves five stars for the gorgeous cover of David Bowie's "Ashes to Ashes" alone.

This is definitely not the place to start if you're looking to "try out" or "sample" Happy's music.

This was primarily intended to be (as stated in the liner notes on the album) a collection of Happy's quieter/softer tunes (not that she ever approaches head-banging...). Thus, it winds up as a wash of down-tempo, mostly acoustic songs/versions that can be quite, well, dull.

This album is best for the Happy Rhodes fan that wants to get their hands on some of the otherwise unavailable or hard-to-find songs/versions on the CD...

A better place to start for an intro to Happy's music would probably be The Keep (also a compilation album, but this time of all previously unreleased stuff... with more variety) or Warpaint (her 1st album, and still the best, IMHO).

Happy Rhodes is something of a small cult phenom, and since I heard of her through the grapevine, I decided to try this compilation album. Happy has an amazing vocal range and a richly textured voice. However, Rhodesongs is a one-note album in the Kate-Bush-soaring-sappy-vocals vein. I think with more diverse material, Happy could be a truly compelling artist.