Pictures and Paintings
click the image to get it in cd-cover size
| Release Date: |
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| Label: |
Warner Brothers |
| Rating: |
5.0 |
Description: On
Pictures and Paintings, Charlie Rich got the chance before he died to make the jazz record he always had in him, though of course, this is Charlie Rich, so even when he's doing Duke Ellington's "Mood Indigo," it's never
just jazz. Always a singer's singer, Rich slides gracefully here--in the same song, sometimes even in the same phrase--from jazz and blues to pop and gospel, his gruff vocals straining, sighing, tearing, pausing,
living in these songs until you'll swear you've lived them too. Backed by a swinging combo that includes his own Stan Getz-influenced piano, Rich is flawless throughout, whether he's laying down a definitive "Am I Blue" or revisiting his own "Feel Like Going Home."
--David Cantwell
Tracklist of Pictures and Paintings
Reviews:
"Rich" it is!!
This set of laid back combo type jazz/blues was Charlie Rich's swan song,and these pieces reveal THE REAL CHARLIE RICH,the soulful jazzman who got stuck in the country rut and never found his way home,until this magnificent set of piano blues. The title song,"Pictures and Paintings" is such a haunting,achingly beautiful piece of music that anyone who has ever lost a love can identify with. I first heard this set in 1994 when it first appeared,it grabbed me then,and it still does." Don't Put No Headstone On My Grave","Mood Indigo","JuiceHeaded Baby" are all stellar,as are the other cuts.Charlie left a real statement as to who he truly was with this offering,and I for one was left wanting more.Give it a spin.Oh yeah,his version of "You Don't Know Me" has got to be THE definitive one,it grabs you way down deep and doesn't let go...
Charle Rich Sings Rich
"Pictures And Paintings" C.D. was Charlie Rich's last musical release before his death in 1995. "Pictures And Paintings" finally shows off the "REAL" Mr. Rich. Charlie Rich was not a country singer. He first became a star as a country singer but Charlie could sing it all. In this C.D. Charlie went back to the piano and went back to his soul. Jazz. The song "I Feel Like Going Home" is a heart wrenching story of a man that feels like he has giving his all but it isn't good enough. The man feels tired and weary and he feels like going home. Charlie Rich wrote this song and one has to wonder if this wasn't an autobioghraphy song?? Smile Charlie you deserve to.
definitely a desert island disk
The Memphis-based Rich embodied the confluence of that city's multiple currents of American music. The result is genre-busting American popular music integrating country, jazz, blues, R&B, and even gospel into a seamless whole. Most of the tracks feature a piano/guitar/bass/drum line-up augmented by horns on half the cuts; the selections range from public domain blues ("Juice Head Baby"), to Rich originals, standards ("Mood Indigo"), and the songs by other accomplished songwriters (the title track by Doc Pomus and Dr. John). The final cut, "Feel Like Going Home," is a fitting epitaph for Rich who died not long after its release. Definitely a desert island disk.
