Absorbing
Bruce Kendall | Southern Pines, NC | 02/21/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is an album you might not consider purchasing unless you sampled it first. Give it a try! Sample the cuts, tell yourself they're not great. High points of the CD: The Mingus Big Band's rendition of "Baby, Take a Chance with Me." The pairing of Deborah Harry and Elvis Costello was truly inspired. I don't know that they're in Keeley and Louis territory yet, but I'd love to hear more. Abbey Lincoln offers up an inspired version of "Who Used to Dance," with a Gregory Hines type tap dancer hoofing it in the background, that almost made me cry, thinking about him. We who knew you only slightly, miss you, man! Kevin Mahogany I had never heard of before, but he comes off as a latter day Bobby Short. Definitely someone to pay attention to. The other performers are uniformly excellent, as are the tunes. BEK"