Nicki Leighton-Thomas The Secret Of Silence |
The lyrics of the late Fran Landesman have provided a rich source of material for jazz vocalists and musicians. In the past we have featured recordings by Ian Shaw (A Ghost In Every Bar) and Sarah Moule with Simon Wallace - the pianist who worked closely with Fran Landesman - (Stormy Emotions) amongst others. Fran's lyrics are quite unique and while some are readily recognised (Spring Can Really Hang You Out The Most; All The Sad Young Men; Small Day Tomorrow), others are less well known. An introduction to a book of Fran's poetry describes her work: 'Poet and lyricist Fran Landesman occupies the ironic territory between Dorothy Parker and Edna St. Vincent Millay. Landesman’s work combines pathos and humor and glows with the tough wisdom gleaned from a lifetime of riding in fast convertibles and hanging out in smoky bars.'
In 1997 singer Nicki Leighton-Thomas released an album of Landesman/Wallace songs, originally titled Damned If I Do and re-released it under the title Forbidden Games. This month, Nicki releases a new album of Fran Landesman's songs, One Good Scandal, this time with Simon Wallace and a band that includes Dave O'Higgins Saxophone), Steve Waterman (trumpet), Alec Dankworth (bass) and Roy Dodds (drums).
Nicki says: "I was inspired to start One Good Scandal because of a wonderful writer called Richard Mason who contacted me out of the blue during lockdown. We'd never met but he told me that my first album of Fran Landesman songs in the nineties was on permanent play whilst he wrote his first novel. His encouragement and enthusiasm for the music was so inspiring, giving me the extra push and confidence I needed to move forward with a new project of Fran's songs, including some that have never been heard before. When I decided to work on these songs with Simon again, we thought we'd probably record just 5 or 6 tracks for an EP. 'The Secret Of Silence' was my first choice of song - we had an old version of it recorded in the early noughties with just me and Paul Stacey and I'd always wanted to record it for release because of the up-beat nature of the song. The more we worked on the project, the more we realised there were just too many songs to not do an album."
I wish you would teach me the secret of silence.
I wish you would show me the way to be still
My thoughts keep on flying in different directions
My words simply glad of the spaces they fill .........
Listen to The Secret Of Silence.
One Good Scandal is released on 7th October.
Fran Landesman
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