British chart-topper Adele leads in Grammy Nominations including for Best Album, while Eleanor Dubinsky was voted Best Up-and-Coming Francophile singer in NYC….
By now you’ve likely enjoyed Adele’s acclaimed energetic album, 21, which has charted to #1 in 24 countries, and topped 5 million in U.S. sales alone. Born to a single teenage mom, Adele began singing at four, soon was impersonating the Spice Girls at dinner parties, and wrote her first songs as a teen. We are lucky to have her two smash albums because in November she had vocal cord surgery causing cancelation of her concert season. Of course, the consistent high quality of songs in melody, energy, and passion is remarkable, music for cruising in your Thunderbird convertible down Route 66. Here Adele, between performance excerpts, explains her inspiration for some songs, including the album opener, “Rolling In the Deep” - written at a Chinese restaurant in L.A.!
http://youtu.be/QKAQ4baruqc
In contrast to Adele’s full-throated delivery, NYC-based Eleanor Dubinsky’s sexiness comes from a sultry mellow voice. Add jazzy melodies to occasional French and Spanish lyrics with a smooth, pure voice and there's the ambiance for your evening dinner party. Set out the candlelight and silver. She composed all the songs for Touch The Sky, and plays some tracks for cello, guitar, and percussion. Especially distinctive are “America,” a lamenting love letter for her country (“Will you come back to me, America?”) and “Jue de Duex,” here in a sparse version instrumentally. Gotta love those blue glass earings.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Q8iRzEa4zM
More recommendations from 2011 tomorrow, stay tuned.... -PJ