The canon of the Comedian Harmonists is recreated by the American Hudson Shad, who on this entertaining and historically compelling CD sing both in English and German, to capture the essence of their inspiration. Accompanied by piano, the Harmonists sound is one part jazz and one part music hall, as on Ellington's "It Don't Mean A Thing," where vocal bass and piano pump out a furious twenties rhythm, augmented by scat and and a vigorous horn solo. "Whistle While You Work" is a masterpiece of vocal orchestration, not to mention whistling, and when the Shad assume the personas of the Dwarfs-well, you just have to buy this record to hear it! The traditional "Die Dorfmusik" has a racuous yodeling motif over a swaying 3/4. |
