Simply Natural

Carla Cook | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 1, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Max Jazz Records
• ASIN: B00006JYAQ
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #184,666 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Simply Natural is Simply Wonderful!, October 3, 2002

By 

John Hathaway (Norfolk, Va. USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Simply Natural (Audio CD)

Carla Cook: Simply wonderful! Carla's third release for MaxJazz, Simply Natural, is great! She captivates her audience from the first notes of the title track, one of her own compositions, and carries them through a magical array of notes and emotions! Backed by her core "team" of Cyrus Chestnut on keys, Kenny Davis on bass and Billy Kilson on drums, Carla's voice reaches right into the listener's heart and makes them fall in love with her. This group really demonstrates how tight a unit they are on Ellington's "Something `Bout Believing," by dazzling you with their intuitive playing and singing. Kenny and Carla, along with Cyrus really show their stuff on the last cut of the disc, "I Can't Give You Anything But Love," and the interplay between them is very smooth and heartfelt. I have to say that one of my favorite tracks is the haunting and melodic "Weak for the Man," written by Jeanne Burns, and like the song says, Carla's voice makes my heart "weak in the knees!" Another bluesy track is her own "Still Got a Thing for You," that carries a lot of power, with Cyrus on the Fender Rhodes and Kenny on electric bass, down to her own background chorus of "shoo-be-do." Carla also teams up with the amazing Bruce Barth on piano for a couple of cuts and the results are fantastic! From Ellington's "Tulip or Turnip," to Oscar Brown Jr.'s "Strong Man" and Levin/Robinson's "Are You With Me," these co-producers really cut loose and have a lot of fun! Steve Kroon jumps in on a couple of tracks with percussion and rounds out this well-tuned instrument of a group! Carla says in the liner notes that she is making a "conscious effort to slow down and take it all in." All I can say is Thank You for slowing down! Another thing she says links all of the songs on this disc is that she loves each and every one of them. She has made me fall in love with them as well! Get this disc!
John Hathaway
WNSB Radio
Norfolk, Va.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great CD of A Great Talent, August 26, 2010

By 

ISISnCALI "isisncali_916" (Sacramento, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Simply Natural (Audio CD)

I had never heard of this lady...Carla Cook. A friend played one of her songs for me from this CD and I have been hooked on her ever since. She has only 3 CDs out but I now own all 3. She has a jazzy sound and also an R&B sound, but her voice is INCREDIBLE!!!!The instrumentals on this CD are well done and fit into the Jazz category. She has something for everyone on this CD and her other 2 CDs as well. I like every song on this CD and that is hard to find these days. I do recommend this CD to anyone who enjoys smooth jazz or mellow R&B.

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Jazz for Beginners (Me not Carla), November 20, 2002

By 

Mary Wagner (Fayetteville, NC United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Simply Natural (Audio CD)

If you, like me, don't know anything about jazz, but want to expand your music collection or give someone a gift, this album is a great place to start. Carla Cook has an engaging voice. I particularly like her ability to borrow from other genres, such as Scarborough Fair in this album and Come Ye Disconsolate in the album Dem Bones.