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Hancock, Herbie - River: The Joni Letters CD Cover Art
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Herbie Hancock River: The Joni Letters CD

 Herbie Hancock Discography of CDs
5 stars (6 Customer Reviews)

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Personnel: Wayne Shorter (soprano); Dave Holland (bass guitar); Vinnie Colaiuta (drums).
Additional personnel: Corinne Bailey Rae, Joni Mitchell, Norah Jones, Tina Turner, Leonard Cohen, Luciana Souza.
Any doubts about the incongruity of jazz icon Herbie Hancock covering singer-songwriter extraordinare Joni Mitchell will be obliterated on the first journey through RIVER: THE JONI LETTERS. For starters, the premise is not especially incongruous. Hancock has had a long, adventurous career in which he's traversed genres and masterfully blended styles, while Mitchell has always been deeply influenced by jazz as both a composer and a singer. RIVER features many of Mitchell's finest songs, stunning in their own right and reinterpreted beautifully by Hancock, plus a stellar assortment of musicians and guest vocalists.
Mitchell's pop and folk tendencies have been assimilated into the arrangements; the album plays like a vocal jazz outing. Hancock is joined by fellow Miles Davis alums Wayne Shorter and Dave Holland, among others, and the guest vocalists include Norah Jones, Tina Turner, Corinne Bailey Rae, Leonard Cohen, and--on one track--Mitchell herself. Sophisticated, soulful, and gorgeous, RIVER is a must for fans of Mitchell, classic jazz, adult contemporary artists like Norah Jones--and, well, just about everyone.
When Herbie Hancock released Possibilities (2005), a collaborative effort that paired the great pianist and composer with a group of pop and rock stocks from the world over, it was obvious the restless master was entering a new phase of his long career. In that context, River: The Joni Letters makes perfect sense. Hancock and his fine band -- Lionel Loueke (guitar), Wayne Shorter (soprano and tenor saxophones), Dave Holland (bass), Vinnie Colaiuta (drums) -- prepare a series of instrumentals and vocal interpretations of the songs of Joni Mitchell. The vocalists here include those who were inspired by Mitchell, namely Norah Jones, Corinne Bailey Rae, and Mitchell herself on one number (her own recording, Shine, was released on the same day), and some of her peers in the pop world, including Tina Turner and Leonard Cohen. Cohen's connection to the songwriter is direct in that they are both Canadians and both came up playing clubs and venues in the then new "folk" scene. But Hancock understands something implicit about Mitchell: she was never -- ever -- a folksinger. Her compositions have always walked wildly adventurous rhythmic and harmonic terrain. Indeed, she has played with jazz musicians solidly since the 1970s, beginning with the L.A. record, The Hissing of Summer Lawns, and toured with jazz groups, including the all-star band assembled for Shadows and Light that included Pat Metheny, Jaco Pastorius, Lyle Mays, Don Alias, and Michael Brecker (Shorter played on a number of those dates as well). Indeed, when Mitchell asked no less than Robbie Robertson and the Band to back her on a tour, they had to excuse themselves because they simply couldn't find a way to play behind her. The material here doesn't walk the line between pop and jazz -- something Hancock is very comfortable doing. This is a jazz record with vocals. The album's ten tracks are, for the most part, programmed for a vocal tune, followed by an instrumental. This holds true with only one exception in that the disc's first two songs are vocals. First there's the lovely, spooky, smoky "Court and Spark," sung by Jones, followed immediately by the ethereal yet from-the-gut version of "Edith and the Kingpin," sung by Turner (it should be noted here that she is in fine voice, since she hadn't been heard from in quite a while). In this latter cut, it's a testament to the singer, the writer, and Hancock, how deeply soulful this performance is. Turner is one of the great soul singers, but this ballad lends itself to another kind of reading and is therefore radically reinterpreted here with Turner's trademark phrasing, and the restraint doesn't give upJazzTimes (p.88) - "This is Hancock's finest album since GERSHWIN'S WORLD....RIVER inspires complex reflections on the wonders of Joni, the renewable and re-workable nature of great art..."
No Depression (p.94) - "RIVER: THE JONI LETTERS puts real jazz into Mitchell's bohemian oeuvre..."
River: The Joni Letters Music


Detailed River: The Joni Letters Music Information



List Price $18.98 (You save $7.99)
Category Rock/Pop Albums, Jazz Instrument CDs, Jazz
Label Verve
Orig Year 2007
All Time Sales Rank   664  
CD Universe Part number 7494265
Catalog number 000979102
Discs 1
Release Date Sep 25, 2007
Studio/Live Studio
Mono/Stereo Stereo
Producer Herbie Hancock; Larry Klein
Recording Time 67 minutes
Personnel Vinnie Colaiuta - drums
Wayne Shorter - soprano
Dave Holland - bass guitar

Also: Joni Mitchell, Norah Jones, Leonard Cohen, Tina Turner, Corinne Bailey Rae, Luciana Souza
Herbie Hancock River: The Joni Letters Songs


Herbie Hancock River: The Joni Letters Album Track Listing



Windows MediaWindows MediaRealAudio MediaRealAudio Media1.Court and Spark - (with Norah Jones)
Windows MediaWindows MediaRealAudio MediaRealAudio MediaMP3 Track Sample2.Edith and the Kinpin - (with Tina Turner)  $0.99
Windows MediaWindows MediaRealAudio MediaRealAudio MediaMP3 Track Sample3.Both Sides Now  $0.99
Windows MediaWindows MediaRealAudio MediaRealAudio Media4.River - (with Corinne Bailey Rae)
Windows MediaWindows MediaRealAudio MediaRealAudio MediaMP3 Track Sample5.Sweet Bird  $0.99
Windows MediaWindows MediaRealAudio MediaRealAudio MediaMP3 Track Sample6.Tea Leaf Prophecy - (with Joni Mitchell)$0.99
Windows MediaWindows MediaRealAudio MediaRealAudio MediaMP3 Track Sample7.Solitude$0.99
Windows MediaWindows MediaRealAudio MediaRealAudio Media8.Amelia - (with Luciana Souza)
Windows MediaWindows MediaRealAudio MediaRealAudio MediaMP3 Track Sample9.Nefertiti$0.99
Windows MediaWindows MediaRealAudio MediaRealAudio Media10.Jungle Line, The - (with Leonard Cohen)

River: The Joni Letters Music Review


Customer River: The Joni Letters Reviews 




Average Rating: (5 out of 5 stars) 5 stars

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5 stars A Classic
Too subtle for some, I'm sure, but if you listen INTO these songs and instrumentals, the love and respect that Herbie and company pour into Joni's music is disciplined, creative, triumphant. Herbie, Wayne and Joni are longtime friends, and surely that kinship infuses this classic album. Interesting about this recording is that you can choose to listen lightly and enjoy the pure sonic beauty of the pieces, or you can listen deeply and realize that there's genius at work here. One I'll listen to for years to come.
Submitted by cfrobetterdays (Vancouver, Canada) Verified Buyer
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