Annie Ross RIP
Annie Ross RIP
Annie Ross, who sang "Punishing Kiss" in Robert Altman's Short Cuts, has died. Earlier in her career she was part of Lambert, Hendricks and Ross.
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Re: Annie Ross RIP
https://www.elviscostello.com/#!/news/299273
I WAS SAD TO READ THAT THE GREAT JAZZ SINGER ANNIE ROSS LEFT US YESTERDAY.
I have to be grateful to my pal, Hal Willner for the invitation to write this melody for Annie Ross to sing in Robert Altman’s “Punishing Kiss” and for the chance to share a few words with her at the Sweetwater Tavern after the movie was screened at the Mill Valley Film Festival.
I first became aware of Annie Ross when Georgie Fame covered the Lambert, Hendricks and Ross tune, “Gimmie That Wine” on the “Fame At Last” E.P. in 1965.
Such cues would turn up from time to time, like when Joni Mitchell covered the Annie Ross tune “Twisted” on “Court & Spark”, to which she added “Centerpiece” on her next album.
Annie Ross’ collaboration with the incredible Jon Hendricks and Dave Lambert brought together three singers with the vocal dexterity and a tonal blend that could bring lyrical wit to harmonized adaptations of jazz melodies and saxophone solos which were rendered as “vocalese”.
As a solo singer, you should seek out Annie Ross’ recording of Jerome Kern’s “All The Things You Are”, sung with a pure, flexible tone that deepened in line and grain with time and experience until her voice was entirely suited to the anguished character she portrayed in “Short Cuts” and a song which described a lonely woman, glass in hand, seeing the remnants of her romantic life mirrored in a daytime television melodrama.
Although the rendition omits the double-time bridge that might have been more suited to an earlier hour, the portrait in verses could not be more as I imagined it. It is a performance that owns that over-used cliche, “world-weary” but with a musical intelligence that was alive to the sad, dry comedy described in the song.
But as Annie once sang in “Twisted”: “You know two heads are better than one”.
Punishing Kiss: https://youtu.be/pkXrC-vC53k
I WAS SAD TO READ THAT THE GREAT JAZZ SINGER ANNIE ROSS LEFT US YESTERDAY.
I have to be grateful to my pal, Hal Willner for the invitation to write this melody for Annie Ross to sing in Robert Altman’s “Punishing Kiss” and for the chance to share a few words with her at the Sweetwater Tavern after the movie was screened at the Mill Valley Film Festival.
I first became aware of Annie Ross when Georgie Fame covered the Lambert, Hendricks and Ross tune, “Gimmie That Wine” on the “Fame At Last” E.P. in 1965.
Such cues would turn up from time to time, like when Joni Mitchell covered the Annie Ross tune “Twisted” on “Court & Spark”, to which she added “Centerpiece” on her next album.
Annie Ross’ collaboration with the incredible Jon Hendricks and Dave Lambert brought together three singers with the vocal dexterity and a tonal blend that could bring lyrical wit to harmonized adaptations of jazz melodies and saxophone solos which were rendered as “vocalese”.
As a solo singer, you should seek out Annie Ross’ recording of Jerome Kern’s “All The Things You Are”, sung with a pure, flexible tone that deepened in line and grain with time and experience until her voice was entirely suited to the anguished character she portrayed in “Short Cuts” and a song which described a lonely woman, glass in hand, seeing the remnants of her romantic life mirrored in a daytime television melodrama.
Although the rendition omits the double-time bridge that might have been more suited to an earlier hour, the portrait in verses could not be more as I imagined it. It is a performance that owns that over-used cliche, “world-weary” but with a musical intelligence that was alive to the sad, dry comedy described in the song.
But as Annie once sang in “Twisted”: “You know two heads are better than one”.
Punishing Kiss: https://youtu.be/pkXrC-vC53k
Since you put me down, it seems i've been very gloomy. You may laugh but pretty girls look right through me.
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Re: Annie Ross RIP
Cait O'Riordan: "I'm sad to read we've lost Annie Ross. One of the most improbable things on my CV is a writing credit in a Robert Altman movie, thanks to co-writing one of Annie's 'Short Cuts' tracks. Here's a minute of Annie serenading Tom Waits with 'Punishing Kiss'"
Re: Annie Ross RIP
From 1993:
Philip Elwood reviews Annie Ross with her "Short Cuts" quintet and guest Elvis Costello, Tuesday, October 12, 1993, Sweetwater Saloon, Mill Valley, California.
San Francisco Examiner, October 13, 1993
By Philip Elwood
Every hip fan's favorite jazz singer from the late 1950s and well into the 1960s, Annie Ross (of Lambert, Hendricks & Ross) plays jazz singer Tess Trainer in Robert Altman's film, Short Cuts, which opened the Mill Valley Film Festival last week.
On Tuesday (and repeating Wednesday) Ross is performing with her "Short Cuts" quintet at Sweetwater in Mill Valley, a tie-in with the festival.
Her material is drawn primarily from the film's Hal Willner-produced soundtrack, which includes "Punishing Kiss," an Elvis Costello number, in part; Costello on Tuesday joined in with Ross in singing it — not great music, but it was fun to have these two in duet on stage.
Earlier, Costello sang a new song, solo, titled "It's Still Too Soon to Know" — a beautiful sentimental ballad.
As for Ross — well, unlike anyone else, she's aged since the '60s. She's not the bouncy, swinging, clear-voiced ad-libbing vocalese star she once was.
At Sweetwater she has a superb accompanying quintet (the "Short Cuts") which includes NRBQ pianist Terry Adams, trombonist Bruce Fowler, vibraharpist Joe Locke, bassist Greg Cohen and drummer Bobby Previte.
Adams' jazz-soul-rock 'n' roll keyboard style gives Ross funky support and Fowler proves to be one of the better trombonists I've heard. Would that Ross's tones were so clear, her pitch so true, her improvised (scat) choruses so well crafted.
Ross was faced with two problems — first, she has not appeared regularly as a club act in recent years (nor with this band) and, secondly, she had to include most of her songs from the Short Cuts soundtrack.
She began with "Bye, Bye Blackbird," an explosive but peculiar, dynamically inconsistent rendition. Following, abruptly, was "To Hell With Love," written by Doc Pomus and Dr. John/Mac Rebennack for the film score — Ross's baritone-pitch whiskey voice is perfect for such a saloon-moan.
U2's Bono and The Edge "composed" "Conversation on a Bar Stool," which may be effective in the film but was grim in person, lacking in melody or defined pitch.
"Blue," a Jon Hendricks composition (with Gildo Mahones, his one-time pianist) is a slow, 8-beat moaner which Ross's voice just couldn't sustain, although Adams plays a remarkable, off-the-wall piano solo midway.
Why Ross did "Sweet Marijuana" from 1934 (which I know as "Sweet Lotus Blossom") is beyond me — it didn't fit well. And, worse, it followed World War II's "One Meat Ball," a total disaster.
Another Pomus-Rebennack soundtrack number, "Full Moon" is tough — working with the band for a few weeks might make it a beauty; it seems just right for her.
Withal, just seeing and hearing Ross in such intimate circumstances is a treat. She's got a lot of stage smarts working for her and if her voice isn't quite up to par, some of the old style and class are still there.
Costello will not be joining the show on Wednesday.
Philip Elwood reviews Annie Ross with her "Short Cuts" quintet and guest Elvis Costello, Tuesday, October 12, 1993, Sweetwater Saloon, Mill Valley, California.
San Francisco Examiner, October 13, 1993
By Philip Elwood
Every hip fan's favorite jazz singer from the late 1950s and well into the 1960s, Annie Ross (of Lambert, Hendricks & Ross) plays jazz singer Tess Trainer in Robert Altman's film, Short Cuts, which opened the Mill Valley Film Festival last week.
On Tuesday (and repeating Wednesday) Ross is performing with her "Short Cuts" quintet at Sweetwater in Mill Valley, a tie-in with the festival.
Her material is drawn primarily from the film's Hal Willner-produced soundtrack, which includes "Punishing Kiss," an Elvis Costello number, in part; Costello on Tuesday joined in with Ross in singing it — not great music, but it was fun to have these two in duet on stage.
Earlier, Costello sang a new song, solo, titled "It's Still Too Soon to Know" — a beautiful sentimental ballad.
As for Ross — well, unlike anyone else, she's aged since the '60s. She's not the bouncy, swinging, clear-voiced ad-libbing vocalese star she once was.
At Sweetwater she has a superb accompanying quintet (the "Short Cuts") which includes NRBQ pianist Terry Adams, trombonist Bruce Fowler, vibraharpist Joe Locke, bassist Greg Cohen and drummer Bobby Previte.
Adams' jazz-soul-rock 'n' roll keyboard style gives Ross funky support and Fowler proves to be one of the better trombonists I've heard. Would that Ross's tones were so clear, her pitch so true, her improvised (scat) choruses so well crafted.
Ross was faced with two problems — first, she has not appeared regularly as a club act in recent years (nor with this band) and, secondly, she had to include most of her songs from the Short Cuts soundtrack.
She began with "Bye, Bye Blackbird," an explosive but peculiar, dynamically inconsistent rendition. Following, abruptly, was "To Hell With Love," written by Doc Pomus and Dr. John/Mac Rebennack for the film score — Ross's baritone-pitch whiskey voice is perfect for such a saloon-moan.
U2's Bono and The Edge "composed" "Conversation on a Bar Stool," which may be effective in the film but was grim in person, lacking in melody or defined pitch.
"Blue," a Jon Hendricks composition (with Gildo Mahones, his one-time pianist) is a slow, 8-beat moaner which Ross's voice just couldn't sustain, although Adams plays a remarkable, off-the-wall piano solo midway.
Why Ross did "Sweet Marijuana" from 1934 (which I know as "Sweet Lotus Blossom") is beyond me — it didn't fit well. And, worse, it followed World War II's "One Meat Ball," a total disaster.
Another Pomus-Rebennack soundtrack number, "Full Moon" is tough — working with the band for a few weeks might make it a beauty; it seems just right for her.
Withal, just seeing and hearing Ross in such intimate circumstances is a treat. She's got a lot of stage smarts working for her and if her voice isn't quite up to par, some of the old style and class are still there.
Costello will not be joining the show on Wednesday.