Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Bill Carrothers / Wendy Lewis: The Language Of Crows

Bill Carrothers / Wendy Lewis: The Language Of Crows

By Jim Santella
November 1, 1999
View read count

Bill Carrothers / Wendy Lewis: The Language Of Crows

Wendy Lewis and Bill Carrothers are outcats. By combining impressionism with cynical humor, they’ve come up with a cerebral session that’s both pleasant in its linear form and adventurous through its added dimensions. A jazz pianist from Minneapolis, Carrothers likes to vary from expected mainstream harmony and dress up his accompaniment with dense atypical chords. His solo romps swing with a light-hearted sense that can only come through a love for the music. Lewis’ lyrics are articulated well enough and they’re printed in the liner booklet; however, the deeper meaning takes hold only after studying the duo’s performance.

"She must know what’s good for me ‘cause she’s the one who’s on t.v." for example, is a poke at daytime talk shows. We can easily identify with Lewis’ work because she deals with everyday topics. To supplement the vocal presentation, Carrothers inserts light jazz interludes that belie his true talents. A straight-laced "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" comes with cool jazz piano fills. The sordid tale of Lizzie Borden is offset with a swinging jazz piano center section. Even the spirituals contain quirky piano harmonic tricks; it’s as if Alfred Hitchcock had turned "Jesus Loves Me" into a feature-length film. An accurate singer with a pleasant voice offers head-turning, thought-provoking lyrics while the jazz pianist supplies adventuresome counterpoint. What a concept!

Track Listing

Doll House; Ballad of Lizzie Borden; The Vacant Chair; America the Beautiful; Savior Self; Pas de Deux; Take Me Out to the Ballgame (Seventh Inning Stretch); Jesus Loves Me; H

Personnel

Bill Carrothers

piano

Bill Carrothers- piano, vocal; Wendy Lewis- vocal.

Album information

Title: The Language Of Crows | Year Released: 1999 | Record Label: Bridge Boy Music

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Essential Michael Brecker
< Previous

Steve Lacy with Irene Aebi at Divers...
Next >

Support All About Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.