River: The Joni Letters

Herbie Hancock / Michael Brecker / Roy Hargrove, Herbie Hancock

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 25, 2007)
• Original Release Date: September 25, 2007
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Verve
• ASIN: B000UVLK1M
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #19,365 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Track Listings

1. Court and Spark - Herbie Hancock, Norah Jones

2. Edith and the Kingpin - Herbie Hancock, Tina Turner

3. Both Sides Now - Herbie Hancock

4. River - Herbie Hancock, Corinne Bailey Rae

5. Sweet Bird - Herbie Hancock

6. Tea Leaf Prophecy (Lay Down Your Arms) - Herbie Hancock, Joni Mitchell

7. Solitude - Herbie Hancock

8. Amelia - Herbie Hancock, Luciana Souza

9. Nefertiti - Herbie Hancock

10. Jungle Line - Leonard Cohen, Herbie Hancock

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

On paper, River sounds like a match made in several versions of heaven. Legendary pianist Herbie Hancock re-imagines Joni Mitchell with his hand-picked, star-studded band--including saxophonist Wayne Shorter--in tow. Luminary guests lend vocals to a song apiece: Norah Jones ("Court and Spark"), Tina Turner ("Edith and the Kingpin"), Corinne Bailey Rae ("River"), Luciana Souza ("Amelia"), Leonard Cohen (with an unsettlingly sanguine version of "The Jungle Line"), even Mitchell herself ("Tea Leaf Prophecy"). In the event, though, a few fundamental elements go awry. Hancock plays with almost saccharine understatement throughout, and even Shorter's seminal "Nefertiti" and Duke Ellington's "Solitude" fall into the album's presiding, somnolent surface, though to a lesser degree does the instrumental version of Mitchell's "Sweet Bird." But girding, and in some measure, saving, the proceedings, the lyrics here testify to a subtler wisdom guiding Hancock's set list. The mix includes a continuum from intrepid classics to dusty, fans-only fare, but a distinct reverence for Joni Mitchell the Poet threads them together, and, in the end, this album works best as a sleepy window into one fan's giddy and particular love affair with his source material. Fans of Hancock win out. --Jason Kirk

Product Description

The legendary pianist and innovator explores the words and music of another musical pioneer JONI MITCHELL on his first new studio recording for Verve since 1998’s GRAMMY® Award winner Gershwin’s World. Inspired in equal parts by Mitchell’s poetic lyrics and unique melodies/harmonies, the musicians play with a restraint and elegance (on both the instrumental and vocal tracks) that achieves a perfect balance between the adventurous aesthetics of jazz improvisation and the emotional directness of the finest Adult Pop music Herbie Hancock’s latest recording Possibilities has scanned nearly 400,000 units. Joni Mitchell’s brand new album also releases on 9/25 early confirmed media includes: NPR Morning Edition feature (airdate TBD); NY Times Arts & Leisure Fall Preview; review in The New Yorker.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Get over the Grammy, February 12, 2008

By	IrishJazz "IrishJazz" (Richmond, VA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: River: The Joni Letters (MP3 Download)

For what it is, this is just about perfect. The musicians- Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Dave Holland- are first rate. Joni Mitchell makes an appearance and Leonard Cohen shows up at the end to poetize "The Jungle Line" over a piano improvisation. Everything is done at a slow burn- otherwise it wouldn't have gotten a Grammy nod in the first place. That isn't the natural habitat for jazz.

As a tribute to a great songwriter, well, what did you expect? It is light years better than the TV salute a few years back (with the exception of the Richard Thompson and Diana Krall bits, and the brilliant Cindy Lauper cover of "Cary"- why isn't that anywher but YouTube?)

Check out the other reviews for the CD, or online. Anybody who buys something because it won a Grammy is just asking for trouble. Besides, it only slipped in because Kanye and Amy Winehouse split the vote. Sure "Hissing of Summer Lawns" or "Courts and Spark" are better Joni Mitchell, and "Maiden Voyage" is better Hancock. That doesn't mean this doesn't have it's pleasures.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Deep and engrossing, March 21, 2008

By	Anthony Cooper (Louisville, KY United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Herbie Hancock's Joni Mitchell tribute is very good, and it's nice Herbie received the extra recognition of the Grammy. I don't think it's the best jazz CD of 2007, but I'm not a voter anyway. The key element in Herbie's band is Wayne Shorter. He plays a big role, and his sensibilities shape the sounds of each song. Dave Holland's bass is excellent, and the drums and guitar don't stand out much. The vocal songs are sung by a variety of fine singers. None of them jazz the song up too much. Tina Turner may not be recognized as a jazz singer, but she sounds very good. My favorite has to be Corinne Rae Bailey, simply for the sound of her voice. Even though there's no scatting, it's certainly a jazz CD, and Herbie and Wayne make sure of that. They play unobvious notes throughout, and make them go down easy enough. The instrumentals are laid back, but it's deep. "Nefertiti" is an instrumental highlight. The last song with Leonard Cohen's narration is just kind of strange.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A celebration of subtlety., February 16, 2008

By	John W. Dunner "Jay Dunner" (Atco, NJ United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The sophistication of Mitchell's song constructions provides a plethora of interpretive possibilities. Hancock heads for the Ritz-Carlton. With guest vocalists Norah Jones, Tina Turner, Corinne Bailey Rae, Luciana Souza, and Joni herself, Hancock dances gracefully up and down the twisting staircases of Mitchell's melodies, crossing the ballroom again and again for yet another chic-to-chic peek at her poetry. It's all gleaming wood and polished elegance, even as Wayne Shorter's sax prods Hancock on to more adventurous turns of phrase. The disc closes with Leonard Cohen's guttural narration of Mitchell's "The Jungle Line," a fittingly odd close to an album idolizing an iconoclast. A celebration of subtlety.