Jimmy Scott - I Go Back Home

  by Lisa Torem

published: 25 / 2 / 2017

---

Review

Jimmy Scott was a much-admired American jazz vocalist, most famous for ‘Falling in Love is Wonderful’ (1962) and ‘The Source’ (1969). On the beautifully packaged, ‘I Go Back Home: A Story About Hoping and Dreaming’, there appear multiple talented guests. This being his last recording, all concerned wanted it to be flawless and sensitively done. Jimmy Scott’s team achieved the dream. It begins with the haunting ‘Motherless Child.’ There’s a tearful quality in Scott’s rendition. When he purrs, “This world out here is lonely and cold,” we want to hug him and carry him safely inside a vest pocket. He evokes desperation in every phrase. Joey DeFrancesco’s Hammond organ adds more than a perfect dash of class and the lithe HBR Studio Symphony Orchestra demurely bolsters the rest. ‘The Nearness of You’ features the subtle accent of Kenny Barron. Here Scott performs a duet with actor/singer Joe Pesci. Their voices blend effortlessly. The next duet features Oscar Castro Neves, who sings in crisp Portuguese. This one is a sure-fire hit. On ‘Easy Living,’ Scott talks his way through the first verse—very effectively — and oozes through the next. “It’s easy to live when you’re in love and I’m so in love with you,” he states. That’s one tricky phrase for a singer, but he handles it like a seasoned pro. Renee Olstead guest vocals on the beguiling ‘Someone to Watch Over Me’. Next up is Irving Berlin’s ‘How Deep is the Ocean’. Barron’s keys whisper softly just a shade below Scott. Neve’s delicate strums are also irresistible. They allow Scott the freedom to profess eternal love and adulation. ‘If I Ever Lost You’ features Till Bronner and the next duet features majestic Dee Dee Bridgewater on Orlando Murden’s classic, ‘For Once in My Life’. ‘I Remember You’ is another song that tells a sensitive story, this time around through the folds of a samba. ‘Everybody is Somebody’s Fool’ features guest James Moody. ‘Folks who Live on the Hill’ is listed as a “tribute to Jimmy Scott” and features Pesci too. The CD ends with the tragically gorgeous ‘Poor Butterfly,’ by Gregoire Maret, which features a swelling harmonica. Scott once proclaimed: “It should mean something. It should make sense,” about the lyric. He was a great believer in the fragile art of storytelling through melodic phrasing. Ralf Kemper set out to create a record that would provide the jazz fan with a generous, emotional landscape. The shoe fits. This one will definitely melt your heart.

Track Listing:-

1 Motherless Child
2 The Nearness Of You
3 Love Letters
4 Easy Living
5 Someone to Watch Over Me
6 How Deep Is the Ocean
7 If I Ever Lost You
8 For Once in My Life
9 I Remember You
10 Everybody Is Somebody's Fool
11 Folks Who Live on the Hill (Tribute to Jimmy Scott)
12 Poor Butterfly
13 I Remember You (Marco Beacco Remix)

Band Links:-

http://i-go-back-home.com/
https://en-gb.facebook.com/igobackhome