Holly Cole – Dark Moon
Canadian singer Holly Cole hast just released her 13th album, called “Dark Moon”. And she continues her unique streak of mysterious and oblique soundscapes with her signature raspy voice. Holly works with her longtime collaborators Aaron Davis (piano, Rhodes), George Koller (bass), and Davidé DiRenzo (drums) plus guests Kevin Breit (guitar), Michael Davidson (vibes), Howard Levy (harmonica), and Johnny Johnson (sax) plus background vocalists The Good Lovelies.
The 180 gram vinyl version, including an inner sleeve with credits, is a special treat: recorded and mixed by Jeffrey Wolpert at Desert Fish Studios in Toronto, the album sounds as if the band is actually sitting in your room to play. The Rhodes and vibes combination of the album opener, Irving Berlin’s “Steppin’ Out With My Baby”, is especially rewarding. Most of the arrangements were spontaneous ideas by the group and it shows in slightly offbeat parts of pieces like “Where Flamingoes Fly”. Or the simple, but very effective piano and bass only version of the classic “Moon River”, where Holly’s voice goes on an expansive, bittersweet trip. I really like the harmonica solo by Howard Levy (Béla Fleck & The Flecktones) on “No Moon At All”, with its pretty urgent and upfront arrangement. Holly turns somber on an elegiac version of Burt Bacharach’s “Message To Michael”, which closes out side A of the LP. Kevin Breit plays one of his vast Americana guitar riffs, both very simple and very compelling.
Side B opens with an almost cabaret-sounding “The Exciting Life”, complete with a slightly dramatic, bluesy sax solo by Johnny Johnson. And then she goes to Nashville with the country-tinged title track, with hilarious guitar work from Kevin Breit and the 50s-style vocals of The Good Lovelies: Caroline Brooks, Kerri Ough, and Sue Passmore. One of the album’s highlights. And then there is another interesting turn when she switches to Marty Balin’s “Comin’ Back To Me”, from Jefferson Airplane’s classic “Surrealistic Pillow” album from 1967, a song which Rickie Lee Jones also recorded for her 1991 LP “Pop Pop”. It remains dark, yet hopeful, both sinister and promising. The swing is back for “Kiss Me Quick” which has more of those lively vibraphone work of Michael Davidson and also a fancy drive courtesy of Kevin Breit on guitar. Hawaii says hello. After a solid version of “Walk Away Renee”, Holly concludes with a mischievous version of Peggy Lee’s “Johnny Guitar”, where she duets with Kevin Breit only and turning the piece into a little cinematic oeuvre.