In a Very Unusual Way

Karen Akers | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 14, 1994)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Cabaret Records
• ASIN: B000008CQZ
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #190,392 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Unusual Way

2. Don't Let Me Be Lonely Tonight

3. Sailing On

4. Unexpected Song

5. You Can Have the TV

6. I Know Him So Well

7. How Long Has This Been Going On?

8. I Loved You Once in Silence

9. Maybe/Nevertheless (I'm in Love with You)

10. Just a Housewife

11. (I've Been) Taught by Experts

12. Not a Day Goes By/The Rose

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Passionate and intense, but not Akers in peak form., May 27, 2005

By 

Mary Whipple (New England) - See all my reviews
(COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: In a Very Unusual Way (Audio CD)

Recorded in 1987, this is Karen Akers's second album-and it would be considered an outstanding album if Akers had not recorded several other much better ones after this one. With her strong alto and Piaf-type vibrato and timbre, she sings songs of heartbreak, loss, and disillusionment, giving impassioned interpretations to songs by James Taylor ("Don't Let Me Be Lonely Tonight"), George and Ira Gershwin ("How Long Has This Been Going On"), Stephen Sondheim ("Not a Day Goes By), and Peter Allen ("I've Been Taught by Experts), among others. Accompanied on piano/keyboard (Michael Abene), electric bass (Tom Barney), and percussion (Akira Tana and James Saporito), Akers keeps her instrumental arrangements simple, subordinating them to her voice.

Akers has a huge voice, and she sings with passionate intensity, but in these songs, with the exception of one song, she always seems to be holding back, holding in her immense power. In "I've Been Taught by Experts," however, she wails, letting her big voice soar, and powering through the lyrics. "Not a Day Goes By," often used as a star turn by other singers, is sung ironically by Akers here, her voice remaining under total control.

Sophisticated and reserved, Akers sings like the actress she is, but these songs are all of similar mood, and they demand less, vocally, than she shows on other albums. Akers recorded this when her acting career was at its peak--she had just filmed Heartburn with Jack Nicholson and Meryl Streep (with whom she held own as the femme fatale), had been on Broadway in Tommy Tune's Grand Hotel, for which she had been nominated for a Tony, and had been in several TV shows, and her acting ability is obvious here as she emotes her way through these impassioned songs. A fine album, though not as interesting as some of her others, this is Akers at the beginning of her fantastic cabaret career. Mary Whipple

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars KAREN AKERS - "Just A Housewife or a Cabret singer?", June 3, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: In a Very Unusual Way (Audio CD)

I own four other Karen Akers c.d.'s but this one took a while for it to grow on me. I now absolutely adore this gem. At first, when I heard 'I Now Him So Well' it sounded like her vocal was reverberating - especially when she sings "wasn't it good, he could be mine". Regardless, she can interpret songs with such grace and elegance as well with conviction. She is truly a wondrful alto with a close heart for Edith Piaf. Karen Akers is truly underated but she continues to shine us with her spectacular voice.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply the best sample of Karen Akers superb talent !!!, May 23, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: In a Very Unusual Way (Audio CD)

I fell in love with this recording when it was first released and have been enjoying it ever since. A must have for anyone that enjoys the unparallelled voice of Karen Akers; and a great introduction for those who have yet to.