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Schuur's musical and personal friendships form the concept for the album, but the other theme which runs throughout is the unabashed love song. Deedles is particularly emotive on these sessions, soothing the heart with warmth and charm. Her interpretations are right on target; her occasional tendency to over-embellish or reach for shrill high notes which have occasionally marred past performances are absent here. Several highlights (on an album that is full of them, really): Alan Broadbent and Randy Waldman's arrangements, her playful and intuitive duets with Ray Charles on "It Had to Be You" and Stephen Bishop on "Red Cab to Manhattan," and Stevie Wonder's "Finally" (written especially for Schuur) which closes the album.
I've long asserted that Diane Schuur is one of the premiere vocalists of our generation, and this album is one the best in her discography to support that claim.
Title: Friends For Schuur | Year Released: 2000 | Record Label: Not On Label (Diane French Self-released)
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