Search - Shirley Horn :: May the Music Never End

Just Unbelievably Terrific

08/29/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Simply Incredible that at 69 Ms. Horn can turn out an album like this. Especially given her personal health issues and the fact that she does not accompany herself as she ususally does, this is a 5+ star winner--one of the best of her career."If You Go Away" is haunting and magical at the same time--the best track on the CD. Not since "I Love You, Paris" has Ms. Horn been in such consistent top form, with each track a wondrous experience.If this is your first introduction to Shirley Horn, you are in for a treat. If you don't know her work, what are you waiting for?"

Vintage Horn

Terrance H. Heath | Washington, DC | 04/06/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I've been a fan of Horn's since she released "You Won't Forget Me," and since then I've bought her recordings faithfully, and never been disappointed. Horn continues to please with "May the Music Never End." Where the title of "You Won't Forget Me" seems like a musical promise, "May the Music Never End" is surely the fervent hope of any Horn fan. Her choice of material is immpecable, as usual, and one notes the hint of a farewell in her choice of songs like "Yesterday," "If You Go Away," "Everything Must Change," and the title track. There's a moment in "Yesterday" when her voice breaks, either because she's approaching its limits or because of the emotional delivery. Either way, it works. But Horn truly hits her stride during the final half of the cd, beginning with a haunting take on "Ill Wind." The autumnal tone really takes hold with the final three songs: "Everything Must Change," "This Is All I Ask," and "May the Music Never End." It sounds as if Horn - after the death of her usual bass player, and her own health problems forced her to hand-off piano duties on this CD - is bidding a fond farewell to music and to the world. But Horn's fans certainly hope not. After all, we don't want the music to ever, ever end."

Poignant, autumnal Horn

Eric Holck | Los Angeles, CA | 06/25/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Shirley Horn's pianos and vocals are so interdependent on each other that the whole has always been so much greater than the sum of the parts. Witness Horn's piano accompaniment of Carmen McRae's vocals on "Sarah: Dedicated to You" which, while sensitive and skilled, somehow lacked the Horn "magic". Similarly, when Horn lent her vocals to Charlie Haden's "Art of the Song", there was a hesitancy to them that one simply does not hear when she provides her own accompaniment (making her 2001 release, "You're My Thrill", a particularly welcome return to form). On this album, the recent amputation of Horn's right foot has forced her to leave the keyboard work to two other artists; this has resulted in a program which, while still masterful, leaves the listener wondering just how much finer it could have been with Horn in her rightful place seated at her Steinway. There is more breathiness here, and a far more tentative, less fluid approach to her singing which seems to be as much about remaining in step with her musicians as it does about providing emotional depth to the material (which is particularly noticeable on the slower ballads). The playlist is typically top-notch, of course - especially the mesmerizing "If You Go Away", the poignant "This is All I Ask" and the gorgeously sung title song that is almost ineffably moving. There is an autumnal cast to this album which, in view of Horn's recent health problems (coupled with the loss of her long-time bassist), cannot be merely coincidental. In fact, it almost appears as if Horn is saying goodbye to her listeners with this release - something no devoted fan of Horn wants to hear any time soon."