Wholly Earth

Abbey Lincoln

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 26, 1999)
• Original Release Date: January 26, 1999
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Polygram Records
• ASIN: B00000HXFI
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #172,050 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Abbey Lincoln's follow-up to the well-received Verve release Who Used to Dance finds the singer stretching her sweet and sour vocals and exquisitely languorous phrasing over a set of (mostly) original material. Joined by the likes of Bobby Hutcherson on vibes and marimba and Nicholas Payton on trumpet and flügelhorn, Wholly Earth is wholly Abbey Lincoln--romance buffered by heartbreak tragedy; idealism diffused by real-life pitfalls; striking beauty windblown by brief shadows and sad downpours. On the title cut she is swept away by joy while "Caged Bird" is a melancholy shuffle and "And It's Supposed to Be Love" is a romantic tearjerker. That Ms. Lincoln can express so many moods--some just by the mere sound of her voice--is testament to her tremendous talents. That a record like Wholly Earth is large enough to contain all she has to offer is testament to its remarkable success. --S. Duda

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Keeper, Not a Classic, March 8, 2000

By	Miles P. Grier "mpg77" (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Undoubtedly, Abbey Lincoln is one of the most intelligent, sophisticated singers out there. Everyone, it seems, has noted her way with lyrics -- a commitment to the defiance, wry humor, or lovelessness of the songs' emotional world that surely co-exists with her acting skills. Very few people read a lyric as well as Abbey.

On a purely musical level, Abbey's voice is an eccentric and unusual instrument. When matched with the right material, the results are sublime. However, unspectacular accompaniment, arrangements, or lyrics draw the listener's attention to Abbey's vocal shortcomings. Although Abbey does not commit some of the egregious lapses in intonation that mar volume two of her Billie Holiday tribute, "Wholly Earth" does not have the consistent excellence of some of her other albums. Two of those better albums are: "Abbey is Blue" (a 50s collaboration with Max Roach) and "When there is Love" (good songs sung well with sympathetic pianist Hank Jones as only accompaniment).

"Wholly Earth" is somewhere between one-half and two-thirds of a great album. Her original songs fare worst: "Conversation With a Baby" features her musings about the celestial origins of babies, but remains entirely earthbound because its descending melody, harmonic structure, and solos are uninventive. Yet, "And It's Supposed to Be Love" and the title track show that Abbey and the band can compensate for some unoriginality in lyric, melody, or harmony with a groove that highlights the musicians' unity of purpose. "Another Time, Another Place" and "If I Only Had a Brain" also deserve special mention as well-performed standards.

I think that reviewers and listeners should stop forgiving Abbey's faults in intonation, songwriting, and melodic choices (e.g. a screechy ending that mars a well-performed title track) and push her to exhibit what the best of these tracks show. Five stars? A bit much. Save that for consistent and truly outstanding albums. Perhaps it's time that Verve released Abbey from (or encouraged her to exceed) the pattern of ballads and originals performed with a piano-led trio that most of her Verves follow.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Abbey Lincoln at her best, July 31, 1999

By	Bill Eckert ([e-mail]) (Plainfield, NH) - See all my reviews

Abbey Lincoln's A Turtle's Dream was my introduction to her art, and I highly recommend it. But Wholly Earth is more honest, less cute, and artistically whole. To call 'And It's Supposed to Be Love' a romantic tear jerker (see Amazon's review) is way off. Listen (read if you must) the words, and you'll know what this is about. But it's not melodramatic, just up-front honest. 'Midnight Sun' is a beautiful arrangement, 'Another World' has it's own space and tempo that fits Abbey (who wrote it) just right. It fits beautifully with 'Another Time, Another Place' two cuts later. 'If I Only Had a Brain' is a lot of fun, but holds something deeper than we knew back in Oz. Abbey's 'Learning How to Listen' sums it all up. Abbey - thanks for helping me learn how to listen.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Unforgettable voice, July 29, 1999

By	Jordi Falgàs ([e-mail]) (Figueres, Catalonia) - See all my reviews

I had the great opportunity to see and listen to Abbey Lincoln and her group live, for the first time, at the Andorra International Jazz Festival in Escaldes-Engordany (Andorra) last July 17, a concert where she sang most of the material on this new album. To listen to her live, performing these songs, will be an experience I will always remember, specially every time I listen the CD. I had never enjoyed so much her voice and her music until "Wholly Earth"; and the musicians on the record, in particular Bobby Hutcherson, Marc Cary and John Drummond-these two on the concert as well-have made an impeccable work, full of inspiration, delicacy and creativity. "If I only had a brain..."