Stripped

"All of this is best heard in a late-night setting. The volume of Gray's rasping voice rarely breaks above the level of an intimate conversation - at times, she sounds a bit off in the distance - and the group plays as if it's trying not to disturb a dozing parishioner. For all its emphasis on the past, Stripped sounds like a step forward".

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"This wonderful album (...) finds the quirky Ohio-born singer backed by a jazz quartet that includes guitarist Russell Malone and trumpeter Wallace Roney. The album's title alludes to the fact that the arrangements are pared-down, with the resultant spatial, live feel benefitting from the binaural recording process. Gray's husky voice is in fine fettle, framed by some skeletal, low-key jazz instrumentation. The opener, Annabelle, is superb, as is a mellow version of Gray's signature hit, I Try. Most mind-blowing of all is Macy's offbeat jazz take on Metallica's Nothing Else Matters".

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"Produced as one of the Chesky Binaural + Series, this record showcases Macy Gray in what might be her bona fide persona. Recorded with no over dubs, in a two-day session, this is as close to a live gig as one could imagine, with spatial realism and no audience background noise to hamper audio quality. Gray is a throwback to the early days when jazz singers were not pretentious, but had to rely on their innate talent to carry the tune with raw emotion and sensual grace. Let's hope Chesky and Gray hook up again for an encore performance".

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