1. A Fifth of Beethoven
2. Spain
3. Dido's Lament (Purcell)
4. It's Sand. Man!
5. Adagio in G minor (Albinoni/Giazotto)
6. Bolero (Ravel)
7. Cielito Lindo
8. Straighten Up and Fly Right
9. Piano Concerto 21, 2nd mvt. (Mozart)
10. Gotcha
11. Bachbeat.
Joanna Goldsmith, Julie Kench – Sopranos
Kineret Erez, Johanna Marshall – Altos
Tom Bullard, Richard Eteson – Tenors
Tobias Hug, Jeremy Sadler, Simon Masterton –
Basses
Shlomo – Beatboxer (tracks 1, 11)
MC Zani, Bellatrix, Spitf’ya, Jestar – Beatboxers
(track 11)
Having
recently reviewed
a CD by New York Voices, I was looking forward
to comparing their album with this new one
by the Swingle Singers. The Swingles were
formed in 1962, so their wealth of experience
should tell in their favour. Admittedly the
personnel of this vocal octet has changed
continually over the years but I didn’t expect
to be disappointed by the group’s latest incarnation.
Yet I am.
The
main trouble is that some of the singing is
not in tune - a fairly basic requirement in
such a group. This tendency is noticeable
on the very first track – a vocal version
of Walter Murphy’s 1976 hit adaptation of
the famous theme from Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony.
On several tracks, the women’s voices are
painfully shrill and the overall effect is
painful. The disappointment is compounded
because the Swingles have taken to creating
"vocal percussion" and "beatboxing",
creating percussive sounds with their mouths
and voices. This gives many tracks the deadening
ambience of rapping or hip-hop: a mechanistic
sound which homogenises tunes and drains them
of individuality.
Some
tracks still impress with clever singing and
imaginative arrangements. For example, Spain
(by Al Jarreau out of Rodrigo, via Chick Corea)
captures the vivacity of Chick Corea’s version
– and the vocal percussion works well. But
Straighten Up and Fly Right has none
of the exuberance of Nat "King"
Cole’s classic recording.
The
Swingles also tackle various classical compositions,
but beatbox-style percussion hardly suits
such pieces as Dido’s Lament or Albinoni’s
Adagio. In the latter, Jeremy Sadler
makes noises like escaping steam: inappropriate
for this solemn classic. And the final Bachbeat
brings in a beatboxer called Shlomo and some
of his chums to mistreat a Badinerie
by Bach. It sounds like one of those novelty
records which try to make their mark with
funny noises. That grinding noise you hear
is Bach turning in his grave.
Don’t
get me wrong: much of this album is very clever
– but altogether a bit too clever. The final
score: New York Voices 5, Swingle Singers
2.
Tony Augarde
CD Reviews
Signum
SIGCD 104
