Search - Eliane Elias :: Timeless Eliane Elias

From the Dawn of Eliane

Jinkyu | 01/09/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Although "Timeless" was released in 2003, it consists entirely of six tracks from "Illusions" (1986) and three tracks from "Cross Currents" (1987). These were Eliane's first two CDs, both on the Denon label. Also, "Timeless" merely represents a further distillation of "Best of" material, after the compilation that produced the 1995 CD "The Best of Eliane Elias on Denon." That CD has all the songs on this one, plus "Beautiful Love" and "One Side of You" from "Cross Currents" and the title cut from "Illusions." This means that "Best of," if you can find it, is a better buy than "Timeless." (For the material on her six pre-1995 Blue Note CDs, one needs to look elsewhere.)



I comment on "Best of" elsewhere on Amazon; for here, suffice it to say "Timeless" is basically straight jazz, with song credits including Rodgers/Hart, Haven Gillespie, and Herbie Hancock. There is also some samba texture and a popular feel. Eliane is on acoustic piano, with support mostly from a rhythm section, without the elaborate production work and musical backing of her CDs in the 2000s. The cover material is solid, and on her three original tracks Eliane demonstrates her early-stage songwriting abilities, boding well for things to come.

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