Staff Pix 10/18: Jazz

Leaves are blowing around and the winds whistling through campus. The Milk Crate staff’s been pouring over some jazz this week to help unwind after another long week of liberal arts school.

“Clouds Moving on the Sky” by Emahoy Tsegué-Maryam Guèbrou

Emahoy Tsegué-Maryam Guèbrou is an absolutely fascinating musician. Born in Ethiopia, Tsegué-Maryam Guèbrou had a classical music education playing violin and piano. She was quickly labeled a prodigy and poised to become famous for her work. Her immense musical talents landed her with a place at the Royal Academy of Music in London. To much shock, she declined the offer and instead joined a convent. Contrasting her privileged upbringing within her Swiss private school teaching, she instead chose to lead a religious life barefoot in the mountains. She spent the rest of her life as a nun and recorded her compositions, blending her classical training with jazz influences. She was known to practice up to nine hours a day, which makes me feel pathetic because after an hour of practicing I personally feel wiped out. I will always aspire to gain the eternal wisdom and motivation she clearly found in the nunnery.  —Monika Krueger

“The Girl From Ipanema” by Amy Winehouse

Amy, Amy, Amy…sorry, wrong song. Miss Winehouse fails to do any wrong in my book. And simply, her take on the classic “The Girl From Ipanema” is nothing short of a complete sonic delight. Though this ‘60s track has been covered to oblivion, her Amy-isms take this iteration to unique height with its twanging drums, subtle horns, and effortless scatting. Jazz was infamously Amy’s first love–a sentiment that shines not only through her original body of work, but also by way of the raw passion on “The Girl From Ipanema.” —Sofia Giarrusso

“Dawn “ by Mahavishnu Orchestra

What happens when you put five of the absolute best musicians in the world in one room, enlighten them with a little bit of Eastern spirituality, and give them the freedom to make whatever it is their virtuosic minds so desire? You get the Mahavishnu Orchestra, their 1971 jazz-fusion staple The Inner Mounting Flame and “Dawn,” a song so ineffably beautiful that it nearly puts the entire fusion genre to shame solely by virtue of just how damn good it sounds. In comparison to the tracks that border it on Inner Mounting Flame, “Dawn” is incredibly subdued, though that doesn’t mean that it lacks any of the technical panache or that makes Mahavishnu such a thrilling band to listen to. In fact, there are few moments in all of ‘70s rock as transcendent as the track’s opening moments, where John McLaughlin’s fuzzed-out guitar and Jerry Goodman’s melancholic violin coalesce into a harmony so melodically rich and so hypnotic, you barely even realize that it’s already metamorphosed into an even smoother, more sultry guitar solo. —Lucca Swain

“Dois Pra Lá, Dois Pra Cá” by Elis Regina

Perfect for dancing in the kitchen with a lover, or pondering what-ifs, or trying to teach yourself how to dance a simple bossa two-step, or drinking tea at ungodly hours of the morning. Elis Regina is a goddess that has mastered lovesick bossa nova! This song ponders a past dance with a lover and deeply wishing to be back, recounting the steps, with his hands around her. Two steps here, two steps there… maybe everything will all be okay if she gets one more dance with this man. While that happens, I will be listening to this song in my kitchen and teaching myself how to dance to bossa nova.  —Ari Mei-Dan

“It’s Oh So Quiet” by Björk

—Bennett Himmel

“Porgy (I Loves You Porgy) [Outtake]” by Bill Evans Trio

The most perfect song for: dusk, dinner party jazz, blushing, reminiscing, Manhattan, kicking dead leaves, suede, silk scarves, bikes with wire baskets, fireplaces, fondue, poached pear with a silver spoon, tagliatelle bolognese with a glass of chianti, the corner booth, turtlenecks, locations involving cobblestone, locations near rivers, drinking espresso, people-watching on benches at night, mauve, mahogany, martinis, reading and writing poetry, opening a worn leather-bound book, an old fashioned, adjusting dark red dahlias in a charcoal vase, your friend (whom you deeply treasure) to play on the hotel Steinway (at which you become slightly breathless), whereupon watching them (a momentary glance?), you let the music fill the silence between you. —Christian Jones

“He Needs Me” by Nina Simone

A classically trained pianist, Simone began playing jazz in New York and released her debut album Little Girl Blue at 25 years old; it stands as one of the best debuts of all time. “He Needs Me” is one of my favorites off the album. Here, Simone has what can only be described as “gravitational pull”; her voice is magnetizing and intimate, as if she is singing directly to you. This lends to Simone’s doleful commitment to her lover. The constant repetition of “he needs me” remains sorrowfully paced, supported by the shuffle of the drums, and the flutter of the her piano accompaniment. There seems to be a battle between her commitment to him and the looming realization that she is equally, if not more, dependent on him, which is fully realized in the the last lines of the song. —Adelaide Russell

“What Love Will Do To You” by Laufey

Listening to this song on a spinning record with the only source of light being candles scattered throughout the room provides a type of comfort that’s unmatched. When mixing jazz with various other genres of music, Laufey creates her own unique sound on her debut album Everything I Know About Love. In the song, “What Love Will Do To You,” Laufey softly sings about how irrational love makes her feel. Whether it’s a crush, romance, infatuation, or anything of the sort, love brings out something in us that no other emotion has the power to do. I love how in this song, instead of taking accountability for her actions and behaviors, Laufey chooses to blame it all on love. You know what, I blame love too. —Delaney Roberts

“Águas de Março” by Elis Regina, Antônio Carlos Jobim

Bossa Nova is a genre of jazz from Brazil that was heavily influenced by the American cool jazz genre of the ‘40s and ‘50s. This tune is an iconic bossa nova standard and has been covered by numerous musicians. The original is by Antônio Carlos Jobim, and this version, sung as a duet with Elis Regina, is my favorite. The song opens with light guitar strums and a twinkling piano, establishing the laid back tempo of the Brazilian jazz scene. Regina starts to sing, and her voice has a rich tone. Jobim and Regina vocals overlap, akin to a conversation in which ideas keep building on each other. This is the element that makes this version stand out to me, it feels like I’m listening to a conversation between friends or lovers; it’s an intimate moment. Towards the end of the tune, I can hear Regina’s smile as she sings, elevating the organic emotion that radiates from this bossa nova classic. On any bossa nova playlist, you’ll find at least one version of Águas de Março, but this duet truly captures the beauty of voices melting together. —Izzie Claudio

“Tryin’ Times” by Roberta Flack

I came to Roberta Flack knowing her smooth, radio ready hits like “Feel Like Making Love” and “Killing Me Softly With His Song.” So imagine my surprise when a best-jazz-albums-of-all-time list was topped with her debut First Take. The album centers around the slow-burning “Tryin’ Times,” which sizzles from front to back with an unmatched frustration and suaveness. With a voice clear as a bell and strong as an ox, Flack slides in between her own piano accompaniment and a tight group of musicians all working towards the same thesis, which falls into itself just as her piano solo falls back into the same few somber chords: “Folks wouldn’t have to suffer / If there was more love for your brother / But these are tryin’ times.” —Nathan Hilyard