This wonderful collection of Laura Nyro's final recordings before her death in 1997 can only strengthen the reputation of one of the true musical enigmas of the last 35 years. Recorded in 1994 and 1995, and split evenly between original compositions and several of her beloved jazz and R&B tunes Nyro sang as a teenager on the street corners of New York, Angel in the Dark perfectly blends the two into a seamless hymn to the heart. Whether swinging through swoony classics like "Walk on By" and "Ooh Baby Baby" or stunning new songs like "Angel in the Dark," "Sweet Dream Fade," and "Animal Grace," Nyro's languid, instantly recognizable voice eerily seems to have barely aged over several decades. Although slightly deeper than on her earlier recordings, her voice--the very epitome of soul--still chills and raptures absolutely unlike any other. It's just Laura and her piano on half of these tracks, while the others get a classy polish from such jazz and R&B notables as Bernard Purdie, Will Lee, John Tropea, and the Brecker Brothers. Laura Nyro always seemed somewhere outside of time and space, and Angel in the Dark is nothing short of a magnificent final kiss blown from the other side. --Carl Hanni Amazon.com
 |  | Still soulfully sweet ,sexy showing great strength!! |  |
I have been a Laura Nyro fan forever, or at least from the first
album. Her artful and honest music has always been just that, a true creation of who she was. As she aged her music reflected her
stages in life. "Angel In the Dark", her last communication, shows
us her final fears,thoughts and feelings. I found the album delightfully simple and intimate. What kind of strength it must have taken to work on this last album through such a painful
illness! Thank you Laura, you are the music and as always, the
music is forever you.
May 14, 2008I recently discovered the wondeous talent of Laura Nyro, and let me tell you I can't get enough of her!! I now have several of her CD's and they are all great. Her music has soul, it has passion, it has emotion. She poured herself into her work, and every song is a treasure.
June 3, 2007The title is just perfect. Laura was an angel who chose to keep herself hidden from us except for her beautiful voice and truly wonderful songs. I was a fan of hers since she began recording. This is a great album. Alot of her music and music she adored is on this album. This album was released after her death. Her voice has such great color in it. She is in as good a voice here as she was in Eli and the Thirteenth Confession. Alot to be said for giving up smoking! God I really miss her.
December 29, 2004I moved to Nashville in 2001 and bought this CD right before I relocated. I flew to Nashville while my things were on a moving truck and this was one of the few CDs I slipped into my bag that I brought with me. When my things were delayed getting here for almost three weeks, this CD was in constant rotation, soothing, calming and reassuring my soul. This CD contains "the best of both worlds" that Laura moved in and out of throughout her career...The Lunar poet who wrote from another galaxy and the crooner who loved to sing the soul songs of her youth. All of the new compositions ("Triple Goddess Twilight", "Gardenia Talk", the title cut and my personal favorite "Serious Playground) are all individually brilliant...Perhaps Laura's best writing...The cover songs are all stirring..."Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow", "He Was Too Good To Me", "Embraceable You", "La La Means I Love You" and the irresistable "Ooh Baby Baby", each take on new meaning with Laura's unmatchable interpreation. Don't miss out on the masterpiece.
November 13, 2004 | | Swan Song from a Gentle Soul | |
I had the pleasure of seeing Laura Nyro live twice, once at Carnegie Hall in the early 1970's (at the peak of her popularity), and again many years later, in the early 90's at the Appel Farm Folk Festival in New Jersey. On both occasions, I was impressed by both her formidable talent and her gentle nature. (At the Carnegie Hall concert, which was an all-star benefit for an Eastern religious leader whose name now escapes me, she spoke between songs about the benefits of Eastern mysticism, when a heckler, who was clearly not in the spirit of the evening, shouted, "[B.S.]!" She stopped, played a few strains on her piano, and paused again for a moment, saying, "You may think it's [B.S.], but I think it's true.") Anyway, anecdotes aside, I always especially loved her early work, which generated hits for everyone but her (Barbra Streisand, The Fifth Dimension, and Three Dog Night, to name a few). This always amazed me, because she was always the best and most soulful interpreter of her own music. I lost touch with her after the early 70's, and she never really recaptured the commercial success of her first four classic albums. But she was always an artist of integrity and grace, and while her voice lost a bit of the range she once had, it never lost that sweet, soulful style that was her trademark. This is a wonderful final love letter to her fans, a satisfying mix of original tunes and covers, and a return to form of sorts, harkening back to those great early songs, as well as "Gonna Take a Miracle", her very fine album of covers with Patti LaBelle and her group. It's an intimate, passionate, reflective, and generally excellent CD. We will miss you, Laura, but thank you for this final, graceful bow. (P.S.: Wait for the "hidden track" at the end, a nice cover of the old Marvelettes hit, "Come and Get These Memories".)
September 2, 2004More reviews at Amazon.com ...
