Don't You Cry (One Microphone Recording)

Many musicians can play jazz and blues, but few can sing the blues with total conviction and emotional authenticity. Dutch singer-songwriter Carmen Gomes is one of those few. A father from the Mediterranean region endowed Carmen Gomes not only with a Spanish-sounding name, but by her own description, with a Mediterranean temperament. At the margins of the culture, the world's differences meet; for Carmen Gomes, the language that gave her freedom of expression was not her native Dutch, but English; and the mode that encouraged her creativity was American jazz and blues. With a dozen previous albums in her catalogue, this accomplished singer, songwriter, teacher, and vocal coach distills more than two decades of live performance and recording experience into "Don't You Cry", an hour of compelling jazz vocal music.

The selection and sequencing of the songs tells the story of a woman’s growing recognition that she must throw off the chains of love—false illusions, fears, and insecurities—before she can find a more honest way of loving. From the opening "Unchain My Heart", a 1963 hit for Ray Charles, through two songs associated with the great Nina Simone, "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" and Simone's own assertion of female sensuality "Do I Move You", with stops along the way in the Deep South of the songwriter's imagination (Ira and George Gershwin's "Summertime") and the historical reality ("How Long", credited to Leroy Carr, originally written by blues woman Ida Cox), the listener finally arrives at Gomes' original "As I Do." It's a one-hour trip from the depths of love's oppression to the renewed hope for a relationship between equal partners, cast in the languorous mode of sultry jazz singing and subtle instrumental accompaniment.

Gomes’ stylistic technique extends past the conventions of behind-the-beat phrasing. Listen to how she teases out the syllables, as if the lyrics themselves were musical notes, not just words on a page. On "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood", she prolongs the vowel sounds through several shades of inflection. With her flawless pitch, the effect is entrancing. You might hear echoes of Billie Holliday, but her vocal sound has developed well beyond imitation to distinctive individuality.

The ensemble Carmen Gomes, Inc. is more than a singer and a backing group. Bassist Peter Bjørnild, whose session notes are posted on the Sound Liaison website, produced the record, and arranged the songs in collaboration with Gomes, guitarist Folker Tettero and drummer Bert Kamsteeg. Tettero plays an archtop semi-hollow body guitar that has a warm timbre; his stylistic ears are well-tuned to blues idiom, especially the minor-key blues of the mid-1960s. Kamsteeg uses brushes throughout and keeps superb time without ever overpowering the singer or other players. In bassist Peter Bjørnild, Gomes has found the deep instrumental 'voice' that complements her vocals, the glove that perfectly fits the hand. Their musical partnership is longstanding, and the trust that only years can bring is clearly in evidence.

With an engineer of the capabilities of Frans Rond, mixing is no longer needed. The careful placement of the musicians and the control of group balance makes "Don't You Cry" one of the best-sounding "live in the room" audiophile recordings I've heard.

Not surprisingly, "Don't You Cry" was awarded NativeDSD Vocal Album of the Year for 2019. I eagerly await the next release from Carmen Gomes Inc.

The team at Sound Liaison – Producer Peter Bjørnild and Recording Engineer Frans de Rond – love the sound of Josephson microphones. When ordering the newest Josephson mic – the C700S – they wondered, could you record a Jazz ensemble with vocals with just one C700S microphone?

They took delivery of the C700S, quickly recorded a familiar track (How Long) with Carmen Gomes Inc. and engineer Frans de Rond had a listen. It was so good; he called the Jazz ensemble back and they immediately used the microphone to do a full album as a One Microphone Recording.

Don’t You Cry features Carmen Gomes on vocals, Folker Tettero on Guitar, Peter Bjørnild on Double Bass and Bert Kamsteeg on Drums. The result is an album that captures the vocal stylings of Carmen Gomes and an uncanny intimacy of the ensemble.

Clearly an album in DSD Stereo (up to DSD 256) and DXD that you won’t want to miss.

Carmen Gomes recently released the albums 'Belafonte Sings The Blues' and 'Don't You Cry', with the latest release being recorded with one microphone.

With her warm voice and precise timing, she gives a particularly tasteful interpretation of classic Jazz songs and repertoire.

This is another fantastic album from Sound Liaison. If you haven't experienced one of these, you need to as the sound quality is in the top 3 if not #1 of all labels I've purchased albums from and that would be a lot of labels.

This is the album you will use to impress your friends with your system if they are Jazz fans.