...in five songs: Laura Nyro
Beguiling, iconoclastic, rule-breaking, trailblazing artist.
Her voice swoops, soars, whispers. Her piano playing, the voicings she employs in her chord progressions, and the harmonies she plucks out of the ether are mesmerizing, surprising, and smile-inducing. She would start in one tempo, slow everything down, speed up again, come to a near-complete stop, and then hit it right back, sometimes all in one verse!
A singer-songwriter’s singer-songwriter.
Perhaps in a different age, Laura Nyro would be better known, an artist that upon asking, “Do you know Laura Nyro?” would get more than a quizzical look. And then the person asking might say, “Oh, you probably know her song, “Wedding Bell Blues” (that is if you are a person over the age of 50.) Or maybe you’d say (to someone under the age of 50) “She wrote, “Midnight Blue”, recently sampled by 9th Wonder on their song, ‘Sir Blue’.” Such is her influence on music past and present.
Her songs are blueprints for artists such as Carole King, and Todd Rundgren. She is revered by Elton John. Still, her live cover versions of songs such as “Ohh Child” or “Dedicated to the One I Love” are beautiful reimaginations of the originals, with just piano and voice. Yet she never quite reached the level of pop culture significance of any of the aforementioned legends.
And, fun fact, Labelle was her backup singers at one point.
Her landmark album, “Eli and the 13th Confessional” is worth listening to from start to finish, (and on repeat) but below is a playlist of five songs that capture, for me, the essence of a remarkable and singular voice. She died at a young age after battling cancer, but her timeless music lives on. Rather than tell about why I love these particular songs, or why I chose them, I’ll let you discover them for yourself.
For a wonderful critical assessment of her music and impact take a look here:
https://www.theguardian.com/music/2021/jul/27/laura-nyro-the-phenomenal-singers-singer-the-60s-overlooked