Search - Carla Cook :: Simply Natural

Simply Natural is Simply Wonderful!

John Hathaway | Norfolk, Va. USA | 10/04/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"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."

Jazz for Beginners (Me not Carla)

Mary Wagner | Fayetteville, NC United States | 11/20/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"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."