Eva Cassidy
Imagine

THE REVIEW

There are excellent reasons why this album might be disliked and why its listening might be discouraged; let me attempt to list a couple: first of all, it's an album of "memorable" songs, often suitable for female voices in consecration that, well supported by their record company, throw the CD to the public that when you enter the shop and have to buy a gift, in the end, there are 15 tracks, and you buy it.
Secondly, she is an American singer who positions herself exactly in that space between Blues and Soul, which instinctively makes us think of yet another imitation of Janis Joplin and nothing more.

Furthermore, the album was released posthumously, by making a collage of various tapes, so it certainly won’t be perfect.
And then, consider that the album is advertised, more or less across all sources, in these terms: "the highly anticipated new release of the great Eva Cassidy is finally available! A few years after the premature disappearance of the now legendary and incredible voice, a series of never-before-released tracks are now available, which immediately jumped to the top of the UK charts during the first week of release!" (sigh!)
Now, I ask you, wouldn’t you feel terrified even just by handling the CD that so swiftly LEAPT to the top of the chart where the Spice Girls have long comfortably resided?
Fortunately, I happened to listen to this album ignoring all that... and I managed to fully appreciate it.

The main characteristic that sets this apart from other albums of the genre is how Eva Cassidy's voice is, besides beautiful, also modulated, composed, never overexposed; the lyrics are clear, almost sharp (she is still an American) but - those who follow her work know well - this makes the difference between the great singer and the regular one.
So the voice "speaks" to us, telling us the lyrics, but also it "sings" and "plays" for us, finding the perfect harmony with the instruments (not at the level, unfortunately) and the melodies of the songs interpreted. And mind you that when I write "perfect", I do not exaggerate: for track 1, one might think that in the end, the piece lends itself to her characteristics; for track 2, more bluesy, which at times seems to hold back to not have to scream; for track 3 something else again and so on.
But by paying attention (and this CD has the ability to captivate, whatever one is thinking or doing), one can see how this voice is luminous, intense, a great instrument.

Eva Cassidy does not imitate Janis Joplin, whom she almost reaches in intensity, but she stands alongside her in regularity and mastery, positioning herself a notch above for the ability she had to make her voice "sound".

You may not like the genre (which is also quite varied), but this album deserves to be listened to. 4 stars because it is imperfect, but terribly close to 5.