Suzanne Vega - Flying With Angels

by Nick Dent-Robinson

published: 8 / 6 / 2025

Label: Cooking Vinyl
Format: CD

intro

Outstanding first album in nine years from Suzanne Vega which breaks new ground

Suzanne Vega has always defied easy categorisation. Despite paying her dues in her early career with acoustic songs in the coffee houses of Greenwich Village, the New Yorker has always had the confidence to spread her wings and experiment with different styles and genres. Her 1987 single ‘Tom's Diner’ was remixed by dance duo DNA to give Suzanne an unlikely huge club hit. And she wrote a critically acclaimed musical about the novelist Carson McCullers too. More recently, her 2020 live album ‘An Evening Of New York Songs And Stories’ contained a deadpan version of Lou Reed's ‘Walk On The Wild Side’ which many loved - with Suzanne later telling how “Lou Reed was the musician who showed me what rock and roll really was.” Now, at age 65, Suzanne Vega has released another new album, ‘Flying With Angels’ where, yet again, she is branching out into new territory. It features blue-eyed soul, garage-rock and seriously well-crafted pop. The record has been made with guitarist Gerry Leonard who co-wrote the music with her. This is Suzanne's first album of new songs in nine years and its best moments are outstanding. There is an underlying concept with Suzanne explaining that the ten new songs on the album are all inspired by some form of struggle – whether a battle for survival or the protection of free speech – as in opening track, ‘Speakers' Corner’ which is a guitar-driven rock number. ‘Chambermaid” is another highlight where Suzanne re-writes Bob Dylan's ‘I Want You’ from the perspective of a key character – Bob's chambermaid, a confidante with whom he shares innermost secrets. There is a hint in the lyrics that the woman's role may have been more than just housekeeping, too. There are also some bracing detours into new-wave rock and roll. ‘Lucinda’ pays homage to outlaw country star Lucinda Williams and punky ‘Rats”’reflects back on Suzanne's own childhood in New York when rodents were such a menace that one gnawed its way through a car seat. And there is poignancy also. ‘Last Train From Mariupol’ describes Ukrainian families fleeing their homes in the face of the Russian assault whilst on “Galway” Vega reminisces about a lost Irish love. Suzanne Vega's writing is as potent and impressive as ever and ‘Flying With Angels’ is an outstanding album from her. She plans to tour the UK later this year, starting at The Glasshouse, Gateshead on 19 October. Tickets are available at myticket.co.uk

Track Listing:-

1 Speakers' Corner
2 Flying With Angels
3 Witch
4 Chambermaid
5 Love Thief
6 Lucinda
7 Last Train From Mariupol
8 Alley
9 Rats
10 Galway

Band Links:-

https://www.suzannevega.com
https://www.facebook.com/SuzanneVega
https://www.instagram.com/therealsuzannevega/

Label Links:-

http://cookingvinyl.com/
https://twitter.com/cookingvinyl
https://www.youtube.com/user/cookingvinylrecords
https://instagram.com/cookingvinyl/
https://www.facebook.com/cookingvinylrecords

Play in YouTube:-

Have a Listen:-

interviews

Interview (2016)

Lisa Torem talks to New York singer-songwriter Suzanne Vega about author Carson McCullers, the new album which she inspired and her upcoming tour

Interview (2015)

Interview (2014)

Interview (2012)

live reviews

Old Town School of Folk Music, Chicago, 1/5/2022

Lisa Torem enjoys Suzanne Vega's much-awaited set at Chicago's Old Town School. which includes hits and selections from her one-woman show about novelist Carson McCullers.

S.P.A.C.E., Evanston, Illinois, 22/2/2013

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reviews

Lover, Beloved: Songs from an Evening with Carson McCullers (2016)

Richly constructed and emotionally intellectual album from much acclaimed New York-based singer-songwriter Suzanne Vega about the writer Carson McCullers

Close-Up, Vol. 1-Love Songs (2010)