Unmarked Van: A Tribute to Sarah Vaughan
Encyclopedia
Unmarked Van is an album of material associated with Sarah Vaughan
by the American jazz pianist Ran Blake
recorded in 1994 and released on the Italian Soul Note
label.
awarded the album 4 stars stating "This is certainly an off-the-wall tribute... This moody and melancholy yet strangely celebratory set will stay in one's memory long after the CD has been played".
Sarah Vaughan
Sarah Lois Vaughan was an American jazz singer, described by Scott Yanow as having "one of the most wondrous voices of the 20th century."...
by the American jazz pianist Ran Blake
Ran Blake
Ran Blake is an American pianist and composer from Springfield, Massachusetts. In a career that spans five decades, Blake has created a unique niche in improvised music as an artist and educator...
recorded in 1994 and released on the Italian Soul Note
Black Saint/Soul Note
Black Saint and Soul Note are two affiliated Italian jazz independent record labels. Since their conception in the 1970s, they have released albums from a variety of influential jazz musicians, particularly in the genre of free jazz.-History:...
label.
Reception
The Allmusic review by Scott YanowScott Yanow
Scott Yanow is an American jazz commentator, known for many contributions to the Allmusic website, for writing ten books on jazz and for reviewing jazz recordings for over 30 years.-Biography:...
awarded the album 4 stars stating "This is certainly an off-the-wall tribute... This moody and melancholy yet strangely celebratory set will stay in one's memory long after the CD has been played".
Track listing
- All compositions by Ran Blake except as indicated
- "Sarah" 3:02
- "My ReverieMy Reverie"My Reverie" is a 1938 popular song with lyrics by Larry Clinton. Its melody is based on the 1890 piano piece Rêverie by the French classical composer Claude Debussy. A 1938 recording of the song by Clinton and his band with Bea Wain as the vocalist was a hit, reaching the top of the Billboard...
" (Larry ClintonLarry ClintonLarry Clinton was a trumpeter who became a prominent American bandleader.-Biography:Clinton was born in Brooklyn, New York. He became a versatile musician, capable of playing trumpet, trombone, and clarinet...
) - 3:45 - "Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless ChildSometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child"Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child" is a traditional Negro spiritual.The song dates back to the era of slavery in the United States when it was common practice to sell children of slaves away from their parents. An early performance of the song dates back to the 1870s by the Fisk Jubilee...
" (Traditional) - 2:57 - "TenderlyTenderly"Tenderly" is a popular song published in 1946 with music by Walter Gross and lyrics by Jack Lawrence.Copyright 1946 by Edwin H. Morris & Company, Inc....
" [Take 1] (Walter GrossWalter Gross (musician)Walter Gross is best known for having composed the music for the popular 1946 song "Tenderly". In addition to composing dozens of other titles, he was also a pianist, arranger, orchestra leader, and record industry executive.-Biography:Born in New York City, Gross gave his first piano recital at...
, Jack LawrenceJack LawrenceJack Lawrence was an American songwriter. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1975.- Biography :...
) - 3:01 - "Make Yourself Comfortable" (Bob MerrillBob MerrillBob Merrill was an American songwriter, theatrical composer, lyricist, and screenwriter.Merrill was born Henry Merrill Levan in Atlantic City, New Jersey and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Following a stint with the Army during World War II, he moved to Hollywood, where he worked as a...
) - 2:23 - "Tenderly" [Take 2] (Gross, Lawrence) - 1:51
- "Solitary Sunday" - 3:02
- "My Man's Gone NowMy Man's Gone NowMy Man's Gone Now is a song composed by George Gershwin, with lyrics by DuBose Heyward, written for the folk opera Porgy and Bess . Sung in the original production by Ruby Elzy, it has been covered by many female singers notably Ella Fitzgerald, Nina Simone, Sarah Vaughan, and Shirley Horn, among...
" (George GershwinGeorge GershwinGeorge Gershwin was an American composer and pianist. Gershwin's compositions spanned both popular and classical genres, and his most popular melodies are widely known...
, Ira GershwinIra GershwinIra Gershwin was an American lyricist who collaborated with his younger brother, composer George Gershwin, to create some of the most memorable songs of the 20th century....
, DuBose HeywardDuBose HeywardEdwin DuBose Heyward was a white American author best known for his 1925 novel Porgy. This novel was the basis for the play by the same name and, in turn, the opera Porgy and Bess with music by George Gershwin.-Life and career:Heyward was born in 1885 in Charleston, South Carolina and was a...
) - 3:54 - "Old Devil MoonOld Devil Moon"Old Devil Moon" is a popular song composed by Burton Lane, with lyrics by E.Y. Harburg for the 1947 musical Finian's Rainbow.-Notable recordings:*Rosemary Clooney - Out Of This World , At Long Last...
" (E. Y. Harburg, Burton LaneBurton LaneBurton Lane was an American composer and lyricist. His most popular and successful work is the musical Finian's Rainbow, "the score for which Lane will always be most remembered."-Biography:...
) - 2:45 - "A Portrait of Roy Haynes" - 2:34
- "Whatever Lola WantsWhatever Lola Wants"Whatever Lola Wants" is a popular song, sometimes rendered as "Whatever Lola Wants, Lola Gets". The music and words were written by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross for the 1955 musical play Damn Yankees. The song is sung by Lola, the Devil's assistant, a part originated by Gwen Verdon, who reprised...
" (Richard AdlerRichard AdlerRichard Adler is an American lyricist, composer and producer of several Broadway shows.-Biography:Born in New York City, Adler had a musical upbringing, his father being a concert pianist. After serving in the Navy he began his career as a lyricist, teaming up with Jerry Ross in 1950...
, Jerry RossJerry Ross (composer)Jerry Ross was an American lyricist and composer whose works with Richard Adler for the musical theater include The Pajama Game and Damn Yankees, winners of Tony Awards in 1955 and 1956 respectively in both the "Best Musical" and "Best Composer and Lyricist" categories.-Biography:Ross was born...
) - 2:27 - "Wallflower Waltz" (Jack SegalJack SegalJack Segal was a composer of popular American songs...
, Marvin Fisher) - 2:19 - "Tenderly" [Take 3] (Gross, Lawrence) - 3:10
- "April" [Take 1] (Manny Kellem) - 2:38
- "April" [Take 2] (Kellem) - 2:36
- "Call Me" (Tony HatchTony HatchAnthony Peter "Tony" Hatch is an English composer, songwriter, pianist, music arranger and producer.-Early life and early career:...
) - 2:16 - "Moonlight on the Ganges" (Chester Wallace, Sherman Myers) - 3:09
- "The Girl from IpanemaThe Girl from Ipanema"Garota de Ipanema" is a well-known bossa nova song, a worldwide hit in the mid-1960s that won a Grammy for Record of the Year in 1965. It was written in 1962, with music by Antonio Carlos Jobim and Portuguese lyrics by Vinicius de Moraes. English lyrics were written later by Norman Gimbel.The...
" (Antonio Carlos JobimAntônio Carlos JobimAntônio Carlos Brasileiro de Almeida Jobim , also known as Tom Jobim , was a Brazilian songwriter, composer, arranger, singer, and pianist/guitarist. He was a primary force behind the creation of the bossa nova style, and his songs have been performed by many singers and instrumentalists within...
, Vinicius de MoraesVinicius de MoraesMarcus Vinicius de Moraes , known as Vinicius de Moraes and nicknamed O Poetinho , was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Son of Lydia Cruz de Moraes and Clodoaldo Pereira da Silva Moraes, he was a seminal figure in contemporary Brazilian music...
, Norman GimbelNorman GimbelNorman Gimbel is an American lyricist of popular songs, television and movie themes whose writing career includes such titles as "Sway", "Canadian Sunset", "Summer Samba", "The Girl from Ipanema", "Killing Me Softly With His Song", "Meditation" and "I Will Wait for You", along with an Oscar for...
) - 3:56 - "Stompin' at the SavoyStompin' at the Savoy"Stompin' at the Savoy" is a 1934 jazz standard composed by Edgar Sampson. It is named after the Savoy Ballroom.Although the song is credited to Benny Goodman, Chick Webb, and Edgar Sampson, and the lyrics by Andy Razaf, in reality the music was written and arranged for Chick Webb's band by...
" (Edgar SampsonEdgar SampsonEdgar Melvin Sampson was a composer, arranger, saxophonist, and violinist...
) - 3:38 - "A Little Tear" (Eumir DeodatoEumir DeodatoEumir Deodato is a Brazilian pianist, composer, record producer and arranger, primarily based in the jazz realm but who historically has been known for eclectic melding of big band and combo jazz with varied elements of rock/pop, R&B/funk, Brazilian/Latin, and symphonic or orchestral music.Mainly,...
) - 2:57 - "Septembre" - 2:53
- "The Unmarked Van" - 4:20
- "Tenderly" [Take 4] (Gross, Lawrence) - 3:00
- Recorded at Murec Studio in Milano, Italy on December 14, 15 and 17, 1994