Everybody's Talkin' 'Bout Miss Thing | Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers

Everybody's Talkin' 'Bout Miss Thing | Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers | Still Swinging

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Everybody's Talkin...

	Everybody's Talkin' 'Bout Miss Thing Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers Fat Note, 2000 average customer review:based on 40 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

And just like that, the "swing thing" disappeared. Of course, San Francisco's Lavay Smith and Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers were at it years before the revival took hold and were always a cut above the rest of the pack anyway. That's because Smith and her pianist and musical director Chris Siebert have such a deep wealth of musical knowledge to draw on, the courage and good taste to recruit world-class veteran players from across the jazz world, and a passion and respect for the style of music they play. Boasting a buoyant mix of boogie-woogie, jump blues, sophisticated swing, and even bebop, 2000's Everybody's Talkin' follows up their enormously successful indie debut, One Hour Mama, which sold nearly 40,000 copies in the 3 years after its release on their own Fat Note label. The crafty arrangements, courtesy of Siebert and big-time Ellington expert David Berger, never get in the way of momentum or mood. It all revolves around Smith's versatile voice, which can convey strength and vulnerability, innocence and smut, sweetness and wickedness--often all at once. --Marc Greilsamer

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Outstanding

Lavay Smith brings back the torchsongs of the 40s, backing herself with some of the best musicians from the Big Band era. A welcome respite from the overprocessed music being churned out. Truly spectacular.

Still Swinging

Caught Lavay and the boys at their recurring gig at the Top of the Mark in San Francisco this Summer and was so impressed I ordered up this, her more recent CD, as soon as I got home. A great live act and an excellent recording --time to get back in the studio, Skillet Lickers! Seeing Lavay at the Top of the Mark is a wonderful San Francisco experience. Despite Armistead Maupin's dissing of the club in Tales of the City, the views of the town are amazing and the cover charge is reasonable ($10 when I was there, and they forgot to add it to the bill). Add Lavy Smith to the mix, and it was like riding a time machine back to a more elegant time. Not a lot of performers putting out big band swing these days (a few do western swing nicely, such as Asleep at the Wheel). Lavay and her group play their music in a way that is respectful of the past but not cloyingly imitative (don't always feel that way about that Setzer dude). It's hard to distinguish their originals from their covers from the 40s. A great group that deserves even more recognition outside of their home town.

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There's nobody like Lavay Smith

This lady is fabulous. You can't get more fun in one CD, unless you're listening to her other CD, which is possibly > this one, but only by a smidgen. She's got that sultry, coy, but upbeat, sassy blues and/or swing thing going on and it's pretty hard to put her into words, but she really brings it back - that era where twirling martinis while a lady sings the blues in a long glitzy dress with a big flower behind her ear was the norm. In fact, I've gone to see her live many times and the CD is better, because as much as I love her big personality and undeniably fabulous diva stage presence, she tends to wander towards the bar in the middle of the act, to flirt with men (classic Lavay style) and leave the band boys to wail on without her for what often seems like much too long. Point being, get it while you can, and that this gal is 100% authentic, reminding us of an era long gone, and making that her here and now. Now who wouldn't want to have a piece of that?

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Second album is even better than the first!

Nice job with songs that hit the spot! New and exciting singer - great backup talent also.

jazz to drive to