Leyla McCalla was the cellist in the Carolina Chocolate Drops and in 2010, she moved to New Orleans to hone her craft on the streets of the French Quarter. Her 2016 solo debut was terrific, and she really hit the mark on "The Capitalist Blues," one of my very favorites of 2019. I saw her perform at the 2022 New Orleans Jazz Fest where she played most of her then new release "Break The Thermometer." I thought the record was a bit of a disappointment after "The Capitalist Blues," and still her live set was one of the hottest of the fest.
Now we have McCalla's new one, "Sun Without The Heat" released last week, which after three plays is feeling like her best work yet. She can go from traditional to avant-garde with the flick of a switch, and she manages to pull it all off convincingly. The coda on "Tree" even dabbles in King Crimson waters.
Check out these three tracks and maybe you'll fall like I did.
I enjoyed So I'll Go and Tree very much, the title track not so much. A good start, so will try the rest of it.
ReplyDeleteHard to beat Alton and Hortence Ellis!
The Goo Goo Dolls cover makes the song sound like one of their own, which is how a cover should be.
- Paul in DK
A charming record!
ReplyDelete"Scaled To Survive" is the one that got me. I love her voice and arrangement.
ReplyDeleteAll different, all great. Thank you, Sal.
ReplyDeleteI am diggin’ this…a LOT! Thanks, Sal.
ReplyDeleteWhat a gorgeous voice. I put this on after starting the day with Paul Simon's "Beautiful" album, the one Eno produced, and they paired up surprisingly well. Great call, thanks for the tip.
ReplyDeleteBoy, was I ever pleasantly surprised! What a beautiful voice! The coda was NUTS in "Tree" and I was DEFINITELY not expecting the song to end like that. I must hear more from this lady. Thank you!
ReplyDelete👍👍 Concur with above: the pairing with Simon’s So Beautiful or So What is so great! Thanks for the share.
ReplyDeleteShe has a great voice, I liked all three songs, "So I'll Go" was my favorite. I wasn't too thrilled with the freak out that ends "Tree". Thanks for the heads up, I want to hear more.
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