Search - Marianne Nowottny :: Jesus In A Jiffy/ Sequin Serenade ~ cd single

The a-side is a surprisingly straight reading of a nativity story, over a cyclic sort of musical background composed mostly of bells and assorted percussion. even thought the bells are frequently discordant, they have a cheerful quality: it sounds like a children's record with moderately peculiar instrumentation the only not-kindergarten-suitable ironic touch, is the tossed-off remark " jesus-in-a-jiffy for you," at the end. nowottny's speaking voice seems quite a bit higher than her singing voice. The b-side starts and ends with a few notes of "auld lang syne", in between it's much more in keeping with the performance i saw: nowottny sings in a marlene dietrich-like register, her tone is complex, her delivery theatrical. the song is built mostly of discordant, dense clusters of piano notes, taking twisty turns; hanging organ tones and high-pitched, string-like sounds add additional layers. it keeps threatening to develop a recognizable melody, but never quite does. (12/00) DMW