Pop Open: Hi Dere From The Atom Age

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

The fifties group - REVEALED:

TRACK ONE: Odetta - "All The Pretty Little Horses" - I first heard this song, which I think is a traditional one, in the version by English underground spooksters Current 93 - obviously Odetta's rich moan is a different beast entirely from David Tibet's hobgoblin sharpness so it took me a listen or two to even spot the song I knew. This is a grower - too hushed on first listen but it's wormed its way into a fight for my second place.

TRACK TWO: Pink Martini - "Dosvedanya Mio Bombino" - Apparently the title means "Farewell My Bumblebee"! Thematically fifties rather than authentically fifties, this choice - jaunty cabaret pop with plenty of wit and lift and a strong lead vocal, which if I liked the cabaret style even slightly would surely pick up a vote. (Also it goes on a bit).

TRACK THREE: Les Paul And Mary Ford - "Smoke Rings" - Gorgeous woozy lounge guitar, pretty recognisable as Les Paul if you've heard any of his other stuff I guess, and perfectly matched by Mary Ford's sultriness. One of my favourite tracks in the whole competition so far, and (for me) an easy winner.

TRACK FOUR: Esquerita - "Maybe Baby" - Busy, lively, throaty run-through of a Buddy Holly song - love the little chirrups he's putting in, but for some reason I've never been much of a Holly fan, the emotions in his songwriting never quite reaches me. Liking the piano a lot though, it's between this and Odetta for my second.

Voting is open until 12 noon on Monday - the poll is beneath the cut below and you can get the tracks streamed here: http://freakytrigger.co.uk/ft/2007/09/pop-open-week-9/ . Voting has been pretty good so far - and is very close too - so do please play. (And don't be put off by the dreaded word "fifties"!)

[Poll #1060889]

Comments

I met her in the Queens Hall in old Edinburgh

[jeff-worrell.livejournal.com]

I haven't heard many Odetta recordings, but I saw her 'in concert' last year, and she works hard to offset the formality of her own performance by generating a communal vibe - e.g. by encouraging singing and clapping along on several numbers (indeed, ticking us in the audience off when we weren't joining in sufficiently robustly). But yes, other numbers were performed in an atmosphere of pin drop silence. So, rather than somewhere between "classical" and gospel it was more a case of veering wildly between the two.