Customer Reviews

Rhythm of Life

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Wow, am I glad I discovered Claudia Acuna! This is not only a 5-star album, it is an album of nothing but 5-star songs. I look at the ambivalence of some of these reviews and I think what planet are you on? What is there to be ambivalent about? Chilean Claudia Acuna has a powerful and beautiful voice, clear and bright, with just a hint of vibrato on the longer notes, full of excitement and tenderness. Her non-native English is near-perfect, yet her slight slips into a Spanish accent are charming, as in her "fontastic drims" in "My Romance". And when she sings in Spanish, she is angelic. The songs and arrangements are all top drawer, and the band, led by pianist Billy Childs, is sheer perfection, especially on the three Spanish songs. On "I Fall in Love Too Easily", Claudia proves she can interpret a jazz lyric with the best American singers, and she will break your heart. The only song that is less than completely successful is "Nature Boy", a radical re-interpretation of the Nat Cole classic, with a salsa piano refrain, but even this one will entrance you. At least one reviewer said she's better in concert, and all I can say in response is that the best acts always are. Get this CD and you'll be as anxious to catch her live as I am.

I confess I haven't listened to this album, but I saw Claudia live at the PR Heineken Jazzfest a couple of days ago, and I was in a trance!! I did not know much about her prior to that, and boy, am I glad I was there! She got several standing ovations, and an encore. Yet, what actually drew such reactions was not vocal or even musical pyrotechnics or flash. Her music is mostly mid-tempo to slow, and always, ALWAYS brimming with emotion. That is what gets to you - the simple melodies delivered by her sensous, beautiful, deeply heartfelt voice. I was almost in tears, I got chills - in short, I was deeply touched by this woman's immense talent, and effortless ability to tug at your heartstrings. In this world of programmed, sugar-coated and pre-fab music, Claudia Acuna sticks out as a very powerful singer and artist, who does not rely on any artifice. Also, she was very, very humble and sweet. I am sure she won over most of the people present at the concert, because two days after (yesterday) I called several music stores, and those who carried Claudia's CD's had run out of them! Damn! I will get them both, that's for sure. If you like your music pure, yet bristling with emotion and beauty, look no further. Claudia Acuna's got it.

Forget what you heard about latin-hype. Also forget that Claudia is amazingly beautiful with a voice to match. Clear your mind and hear the voice of an angel. From the first track to the last, this album, made up of mostly standards, plays out like a soundtrack to a movie. Highlights of the album:
-pianist Jason Lindner's arrangement of "My Romance"
-Avi Lebovich's trombone on "Nowhere To Go" (an original by Claudia)
-"Volver a Diecisiete" the string quartet is amazing here.

-Luisito Quintero on percussion on various songs, most notably is the timbale solo on "Nature Boy"
-Jeff Watts and Dave Holland!

This isn't one of those albums where maybe two songs are good, you will fall in love with this music upon listening.

Clauda Acuña is like Holly Cole, with a Latin feel. I saw her when she came through Buffalo, and thought she was excellent. She was backed by a somewhat unusual combo: piano, bass, drums and trombone-- and she often vamped along with the horn in a way that was not quite like anything I've heard. This CD does not do justice to what Ms. Acuña is like live, but that is a common problem with jazz, and especially vocal jazz. The gang of superstars who back her on the recording sound less into it than the touring band I saw, but they swing right along. Ms. Acuña has a nice way with the standards she sings, and is particularly good when she sings in Spanish. Comparisons to Dianah Washington, or Sarah Vaughn, or whoever seem misplaced to me-- and a lot of people cite Ms. Acuña when they are disparaging Diana Krall, which also seems wrongheaded. This isn't lounge singing-- it's legitimate jazz, and if that's something you like, than this is absolutely an artist worth finding out about now.

The very unoriginal album title should be the first warning sign. I really wanted to like this album a lot. Ms. Acuna has a very clear and sweet voice, but something about the arrangements just left me a little cold. They seem oddly dissonant, overly busy at times, and not easy to listen to. There's some production problems as well, and her voice occasionally seems to be too low in the mix. Some of the songs just don't seem to be well chosen, and are, frankly, not very interesting. It's not a bad album, but I was hoping for more.

I just saw Claudia Acuna and Jason Lindner in concert this weekend and it was amazing. Every single song was beautiful. Caludia Acuna has been blessed with a beautiful gift. I cannot stop playing her cd. If you have the chance to catch her in concert you have to see her. She's amazing

This is an album that grows on you with repeated listenings. It has risen from a 2 to a 2.5 all the way to a (rounded upward) 4. After listenting to Diana Krall, Jane Monheit and especially the incredible Cheryl Bentyne I can say that Claudia is of a different style...and talent. It's not only that I prefer the ballads and sultry interpretations, it is that on this CD many songs are indistinguishable - same beat, similar melody, same rhythmic expression. Her range is not as great, her tone is not as poetic, nor is her diction as clear as many other "jazz" greats but she is powerful. The incredible "I Fall In Lone Too Easily" commands a 10 while the uniquely personal interpretation of "More Than You Know" makes a nice conclusion.

I bought this CD to help feed my newfound addiction of talented beautiful women doing remakes of all the old standards. I am deeply addicted to Jane Monheit and Diana Krall, and now, Claudia Acuna too.

This CD is like one big relaxing dream. From the opening "My Romance
to the closing "More Than You Know" (which is a totally different take on it from Jane Monheit, and equally as delightful), this one is a keeper for sure.

Listen to it in the dark with someone you love and a bottle of wine, and you will have the evening of a lifetime. Trust me on this one!

Hurrah for corageous Claudia Acuna, being non-american and right in the american jazz scene, keeping up the pace with the new generation of american jazz singers without concealing her own roots. Beautiful dark-toned voice and a deeply emotional involvement in each a every song (and we should welcome the fresh and colorful songwriter she is), sophisticated arrangements including some outstanding solos... "Who could ask for anything more?" Ok, she delivers two spanish non-jazz songs... who cares? Maybe 'Ay mariposa' along with 'I fall in love...' are the best tracks. Ok, in the over all this CD is not strictly jazz... who cares? This is good music, made by a fine singer and a lot of fine musicians, and that is all that matters.

I think Claudia is terific!!! She has a beautiful, clear and somewhat dark-toned voice that is reminiscent of Dianne Reeves or Sarah Vaughn but, at the same time, she often displays a light-hearted hipness that calls to mind Anita O'Day. I don't think she necessarilly sounds imitative of any of these people its just the only way I can convey what she sounds like in words. While she's clearly in the jazz tradition her vocal styling and the arrangemnets are very, very modern. I would say that if you liked Patricai Barber and Cassandra Wilson but wished that they were singing things that were more clearly jazz -- you love Claudia.