SOUND CHECK.NELLY FURTADO  This page is currently protected from editing until disputes have been resolved. : ``Folklore'' (DreamWorks) - Three stars
Canada's disarming Furtado emerged three years ago with the format-friendly ``I'm Like a Bird'' and ``Turn Off the Light,'' widely accessible tracks that recalled the playful spirit of '80s hip-hop act De La Soul. ``Folklore'' (in stores Tuesday) finds this multicultured flamingo whipping up another imaginative omelet of fado, pop, soul, Brazilian and dance elements, and calling on the eclectic Kronos Quartet Kronos Quartet is a string quartet founded by violinist David Harrington in 1973. Since 1978, the quartet has been based in San Francisco, California. The longest-running combination of performers (from 1978 to 1999) had Harrington and John Sherba on violin, Hank Dutt on viola and and Brazil's Caetano Veloso for added flavor. The project has an upbeat, joyful atmosphere underlined by the immediate standout ``Powerless (Say What You Want),'' which is fueled by African percussion, Bela Fleck's banjo banjo, stringed musical instrument, with a body resembling a tambourine. The banjo consists of a hoop over which a skin membrane is stretched; it has a long, often fretted neck and four to nine strings, which are plucked with a pick or the fingers. and Furtado's warmly engaging voice. Among other goodies is the talking-drum and tabla-driven ``Forca,'' and a spare, emotional ``Saturdays.'' Nice one, Nelly. - Fred Shuster CYNDI LAUPER: ``At Last'' (Epic) - Two and one half stars Maybe Lauper's powerful and eccentric delivery wasn't made for the material on this standards set named for the overly covered Etta James grinder Grinder A slang term for a person who works in the investment industry and makes small amounts of money at a time on small investments, over and over again. Notes: . Lauper limps along on such classics as ``Walk on By,'' ``La Vie en Rose'' and ``If You Go Away'' - and Dionne Warwick, Edith Piaf Noun 1. Edith Piaf - French cabaret singer (1915-1963) Edith Giovanna Gassion, Little Sparrow, Piaf and Dusty Springfield Dusty Springfield OBE (16 April, 1939–2 March, 1999) was a popular English singer whose career spanned four decades. She achieved her most notable success during the 1960s, with a successful comeback in the late 1980s. are tough acts to follow. But there are exceptions, like the playful ``Makin' Whoopee,'' opposite Tony Bennett
Tony Bennett (born Anthony Dominick Benedetto on August 3 1926) is an American singer of popular music, standards and jazz who is widely considered to be one of , a ska-flavored ``Sunny Side of the Street'' and the brassy, Caribbean hip-shaker ``Stay,'' a number perfectly suited to this colorful '80s icon. - Sandra Barrera JOSH RITTER rit·ter n. pl. ritter A knight. [German, from Middle High German riter, from Middle Dutch ridder, from r : ``Hello Starling'' (Signature Sounds) - Three and one half stars Shrewdly combining a folk-rock-era Dylan sound with up-to-date emo sensitivity, this Idaho-born singer-songwriter stands out via a whispery powerful way with words. ``Lucky are you who finds me in the wilderness; I am the only unquiet ghost that does not seek rest,'' Ritter sings, with Leonard Cohen-esque poetry, in his ode to the muse, ``Bone of Song.'' Other lyrics can occasionally be naive, but overall this tousle-haired young troubadour troubadour One of a class of lyric poets and poet-musicians, often of knightly rank, that flourished from the 11th through the 13th century, chiefly in Provence and other regions of southern France, northern Spain, and northern Italy. knows how to tell his stories exquisitely. - Bob Strauss REBA: ``Room to Breathe'' (MCA MCA in full Music Corporation of America Entertainment conglomerate. It was founded in Chicago in 1924 by Jules Stein as a talent agency. In the 1960s it bought Decca Records and Universal Pictures, and today it produces films, music, and television shows. Nashville) - Three and one half stars She's stretched her creative muscles on Broadway and TV, where at the moment she's three seasons into her own hit comedy series. And now, four years after her last record, she returns with an all-new set, which includes spirited country gems like ``Love Revival,'' ``I'm Gonna Take That Mountain'' and ``Sky Full of Angels.'' On the opening track, ``Secret,'' she unlocks regret with lyrics that read like a story. A lot of her songs do - ``Moving Oleta'' and ``Somebody'' - while in others she plays the part. ``It Just Has to Be This Way,'' a duet with husky-throated Vince Gill, is a breakup song that's simply gorgeous. She hasn't sounded this good since the early '90s. - S.B. BLINK-182: ``Blink-182'' (Geffen) - One and one half stars This unremarkable San Diego trio has raked in an unholy fortune peddling craftily produced sing-song pop to snowboarding seventh-graders. On the group's self-titled eighth album, the simple KROQ formula continues - snotty vocals, familiar choruses, common chords and single-note riffs played on Fender Stratocaster. Yet the studied immaturity and forced fury of these young millionaires becomes instantly transparent in such duds as ``Go,'' ``Easy Target'' and ``Always,'' retreads reminiscent of a thousand and one Green Days. Robert Smith, the pasty Cure singer, is dredged up for the damp ``All of This,'' a misguided attempt to lend a little substance to Blink's lemon meringue nursery rhymes. - F.S. CAPTION(S): 6 photos Photo: (1) no caption (NELLY FURTADO) (2 -- 6) no caption (CD covers) |
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