Valerie Ghent the Queen of Blues, Funk & Soul has a new album recently released, Day To Day Dream.
It lives up to all of her genres, and then some, from the opening track "Wheels on a Train" where you can almost feel your are on a train the music just takes you there. To the closing track, the beautiful love song "Show My Love" every track on this album is a keeper.
This will totally confound the modern day music collector who collects single tracks.
This is why us old timers still live in the past and collect albums. The album is a complete expression of the artist, and this is one expressive artist.
And this album is glued to my Winamp player.
Rush out (or let your fingers do the walking) and get yourself a copy of this album.
To help get you there, here's a couple of tracks from the album performed live.
First up a couple of songs from Cornelia Street Cafe Night of the Killer Keyboarders Move over Jerry Lee there's a new killer in town, and she's cuter.
Day to Day Dream "Present Day Funk Sister" Valerie Ghent (piano & vocals)
With Her Brothers Clayton Bryant (vocals), Tinker Barfield (bass) & Robin Macatangay (guitar).
Love enough for a life time
Your My Star
Something from a little while back, just to show her multi-talented diversity of genres.
Le Refrain de Mon Enfance This was Valerie's debut performance of the song "Le Refrain de Mon Enfance," or Song of my Childhood, originally composed by her great-uncle, Eugene Cavos, and lyricist Nick Friollet back in Paris in 1954. Valerie uncovered the song recently and realized it was eerily similar in key and melody to a French waltz she had written at the age of eight. So Valerie played the two songs together-first her great uncle's song, and then hers, a French song or "chanson" called "The Timeless Waltz."
And finally today for the singer who can do anything, a Barrack Obama political speech put to music.
Obama election night speech Singer-songwriter Val Ghent took Barack Obama's election night address, and turned it into song. Cornelia Street Cafe, New York, December 5, 2008.
Powerhouse recording artist Valerie Ghent regularly wows audiences with her emotive, evocative voice, piano chops to match, and “soul-stirring, uplifting songs full of vitality and joy.”
With her bluesy, funky piano style and a stunning 3 ½ octave vocal range, it’s no surprise that she has toured with music legends Ashford & Simpson and Debbie Harry, and shared the stage with artists as diverse as Dr. Maya Angelou, Iggy Pop, Defunkt and Billy Preston.
A native New Yorker with four acclaimed CD’s on her own label, Valerie grew up in SoHo and Greenwich Village. Born into a musical family, she began writing songs as a child, recording in her father’s electronic music studio, absorbing her mother’s string quartet rehearsals and falling asleep to the music of Ornette Coleman, who lived and rehearsed in the same building.
After a 4-year apprenticeship with UK record producer Mike Thorne (Soft Cell, ‘til Tuesday, Communards, Laurie Anderson, Wire), Val went on to be keyboardist/vocalist and recording engineer for renowned hit singer-songwriters Ashford & Simpson. Working closely with the duo for over two decades, Val recorded their music as well as collaborations with Nina Simone, Sir Cliff Richard, Roberta Flack, Dr. Maya Angelou, Peabo Bryson and many others.
Valerie mixed live-to-air “In the Spotlight”, Ashford & Simpson’s live weekly radio show on WRKS-FM (New York), where she recorded dozens of legendary artists, including Luther Vandross, Stevie Wonder, Dionne Warwick, Wilson Pickett, Chaka Khan, Patti LaBelle, Stephanie Mills, Freddie Jackson and George Benson. ............................. [Continued]
5 Bears
