Me’shell Ndegéocello — Comet Come to Me (2014) |
Me’shell Ndegéocello — Comet Come to Me
°•° Celebrated multi-genre bass player who also writes and records as a solo artist.
“A lot of times the failures make me better. I love to learn from my mistakes–the best way to really improve upon things. I’ve learned to surround myself with better people. People who would love me if I was a car mechanic or something. Just the things that aid me in writing is just quiet time and space. A good home life, and good food. Simple living. I don’t do well in chaos.”M.N.
Birth name: Michelle Lynn Johnson
Born: August 29, 1968 in Berlin, Germany
Location: Washington, D.C., United States
Instruments: Vocals, bass
Album release: June 3, 2014
Record Label: Naïve
Duration: 46:17
Tracks:
01 Friends 5:18
02 Tom 2:53
03 Good Day Bad 4:16
04 Forget My Name 4:21
05 And Yet It Moves 0:29
06 Comet, Come to Me 4:39
07 Continuous Performance 3:22
08 Shopping for Jazz 2:47
09 Conviction 3:41
10 Folie a Deux 3:37
11 Choices 3:58
12 Modern Time 4:27
13 American Rhapsody 2:48
Written by:
01 Whodini
02 Doyle Bramhall / Chris Bruce / Tom Mediodia / Meshell Ndegeocello
03 Chris Bruce / Meshell Ndegeocello
04 Chris Bruce / Jebin Bruni / Elizabeth Lea / Meshell Ndegeocello
05 Jebin Bruni
06 Chris Bruce / Meshell Ndegeocello / Gabe Noel / Shara Worden
07 Peter Davis / Kenneth Fearing / Meshell Ndegeocello
08 Chris Bruce / Jebin Bruni / Chris Connelly / Earl Harvin / Meshell Ndegeocello
09 Chris Bruce / Meshell Ndegeocello / Kaveh Rastegar
10 Sami Amatus / Meshell Ndegeocello
11 Eric Elterman / Otto Hauser / Meshell Ndegeocello
12 Chris Bruce / Jebin Bruni / Stacy-Ann Chin / Meshell Ndegeocello
13 Peter Davis / Kenneth Fearing / Meshell Ndegeocello
Album Moods: Anguished/Distraught Dramatic Dreamy Gentle Intimate Passionate Reflective Restrained Soft/Quiet Sophisticated Striding Bitter Yearning Tender Warm
CREDITS:
•τ• Sami Amatus Composer
•τ• Mel Barat Design
•τ• Doyle Bramhall Composer, Guitar, Vocals
•τ• Chris Bruce Bass, Composer, Guitar
•τ• Jebin Bruni Composer, Keyboards, Programming
•τ• Stacy-Ann Chin Composer
•τ• Chris Connelly Composer
•τ• Peter Davis Composer
•τ• Eric Elterman Composer
•τ• Kenneth Fearing Composer
•τ• Amp Fiddler Synthesizer Bass
•τ• Paul Hamann Art Direction
•τ• Earl Harvin Composer
•τ• Sylvester Earl Harvin Drums, Percussion
•τ• Otto Hauser Composer
•τ• Elizabeth Lea Composer
•τ• Tom Mediodia Composer
•τ• Pete Min Engineer, Mastering, Mixing
•τ• My Brightest Diamond Vocals
•τ• Meshell Ndegeocello Composer
•τ• Gabe Noel Cello, Composer
•τ• Kaveh Rastegar Bass, Composer
•τ• Jason Rodgers Photography
•τ• Secret Weapon Executive Producer
•τ• Smoke & Mirrors Producer
•τ• Whodini Composer
•τ• Jonathan Wilson Guitar
•τ• Shara Worden Composer
Review by Andy Kellman; Score: ****
•τ• Comet, Come to Me, like Devil's Halo, involves a cover of a hit released during Meshell Ndegeocello's teenage years. Having ignited Ready for the World's 1985 slow jam "Love You Down," placed in the middle of her 2009 album, she boldly begins here with a cold-blooded update of Whodini's "Friends" that swirls and pierces. It sets the tone for 11 originals that are largely subdued but fraught with assorted forms of heartache and internal discomfort — unresolved grievances, somber resolutions, candid confrontations. Backed mostly by superhuman drummer Earl Harvin and long-term keyboardist Jebin Bruni, with less frequent contributions from Chris Bruce, My Brightest Diamond, Amp Fiddler, and Doyle Bramhall, among others, the album plays out like a continuation of Devil's Halo and 2011's Weather, with well-defined and uncluttered songs that have subtle and artful touches and twists. Lyrically, this is Ndegeocello at her rawest. In the hushed desert blues of "Good Day Bad," she reveals, "I am haunted late at night and no one cares to ask me how I feel/My only friend's my flask," then notes "Wish I knew my momma, wish I could forgive my dad." Not even the three songs anchored in throbbing reggae rhythms — "Forget My Name," the title track, and "Modern Time" — evoke emotional ease, as Ndegeocello's verses hinge on words like slaughter, pretending, and thrashing. During the album's latter half, a pair of career highlights are set back to back. The rolling "Conviction" is a dismissal delivered casually, almost sweetly, while "Folie a Deux," accented with a soft vibraphone refrain, opens with an offhanded "Don't be sentimental, call me hateful and cold/I just don't love you no more." Somewhat benevolently, "American Rhapsody" acts as a relatively restful finale. While listeners will have to wait a little longer for a break in the clouds, Ndegeocello and her associates have soundtracked yet another emotional storm in vivid, enthralling fashion.
Artist Biography by Greg Prato
•τ• Although Meshell Ndegeocello scored a few hits early in her career, the bassist, singer, and songwriter later opted to concentrate on more challenging material by exploring the politics of race and sex, among other topics. From her 1993 Maverick label debut through her releases of the 2010s for Naive, she built a discography of recordings that defied classification through progressive mixtures of jazz, R&B, hip-hop, and rock. Initially held in regard primarily for her bass playing and bold lyrics, her songwriting, which often examined dark interpersonal issues, was just as exceptional.
•τ• Michelle Lynn Johnson, born on August 29, 1968, spent the first few years of her life in Germany. Her father was both a military man and a jazz saxophonist. She relocated with her family to Virginia in the early '70s. As a youngster, Johnson developed an interest in music; during her teenage years, she began to play regularly in the clubs of Washington, D.C., but eventually settled down in New York City after a stint of studying music at Howard University. By this point, she was going by Me'Shell Ndegéocello — her adopted last name Swahili for "free like a bird." After auditioning for several bands, including Living Colour, Ndegéocello struck out on her own and often performed solo with just a bass, drum machine, and keyboard. In the early '90s, she was one of the first artists signed to Madonna's Warner-affiliated Maverick label.
Ndegéocello's debut album, 1993's Plantation Lullabies, was produced with David Gamson, as well as with André Betts and Bob Power, and involved input from a wide range of musicians, including DJ Premier, Joshua Redman, Bill Summers, Wah-Wah Watson, and David Fiuczynski. An impressive first album, it spawned the hit "If That's Your Boyfriend (He Wasn't Last Night)" and received three Grammy nominations. A duet with John Mellencamp on a cover of Van Morrison's "Wild Night," released a year later, brought her more mainstream attention; it peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100.
•τ• Almost three years passed between the release of Ndegéocello's first and second albums, but during the wait, she collaborated with Chaka Khan on the track "Never Miss the Water," and she appeared on movie soundtracks (White Man's Burden, Money Talks) and on such multi-artist releases as Ain't Nuthin' But a She Thing and Lilith Fair, Vol. 3. Peace Beyond Passion finally saw release in 1996, peaked higher on the Billboard 200 (at number 63), and was also nominated for a Best R&B Album Grammy. •τ• It´s cover of Bill Withers' "Who Is He (And What Is He to You?)" topped Billboard's club chart. Produced by Gamson, it featured a longer list of noted associates, including several heard on the debut, as well as Billy Preston, Bennie Maupin, David Torn, Wendy Melvoin, and Paul Riser.
•τ• Another three-year break between albums occurred, during which time she collaborated with rapper Queen Pen on the track "Girlfriend." Bitter, for which she was billed as Meshell Ndegéocello, was released in 1999. She took another three-year break and emerged with Cookie: The Anthropological Mixtape — as Meshell Ndegeocello — in 2002. Comfort Woman followed in 2003 and Dance of the Infidel, a sprawling album made with numerous collaborators from the jazz world, surfaced in 2005. Two years later, her fantastic Decca debut, The World Has Made Me the Man of My Dreams, which included guest appearances from Pat Metheny and Oumou Sangare, was released.
•τ• Her first pop-related recording in half a decade, 2009's Devil's Halo featured Ndegeocello in a quartet setting. The album also included guest spots from Lisa Germano and Oren Bloedow. Ndegeocello toured the album in opera houses and concert halls across the United States and Europe. In 2011, she partnered with Grammy-winning producer Joe Henry for the album Weather; it was issued on the Naïve label. In 2012, Ndegeocello released Pour une Âme Souveraine: A Dedication to Nina Simone, a collection of tunes intimately associated with the legendary vocalist and pianist. Comet, Come to Me, another deep set of introspective songs, followed in 2014.
Website: http://www.meshell.com/site/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/MeshellOfficial
Twitter: https://twitter.com/officialmeshell
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/officialmeshell
Tumblr: http://officialmeshell.tumblr.com/
INTERVIEW: The Couch Sessions: Interview by Stone and KDotScribe
:: http://www.thecouchsessions.com/2009/10/interview-meshell-ndegeocello/
Discography:
Studio albums:
1993: Plantation Lullabies (Maverick)
1996: Peace Beyond Passion (Maverick)
1999: Bitter (Maverick)
2002: Cookie: The Anthropological Mixtape (Maverick)
2003: Comfort Woman (Maverick)
2005: The Spirit Music Jamia: Dance of the Infidel (Shanachie)
2007: The World Has Made Me the Man of My Dreams (EmArcy)
2009: Devil's Halo (Downtown)
2011: Weather (Naïve)
2012: Pour une Âme Souveraine: A Dedication to Nina Simone (Naïve)
2014: Comet, Come to Me (Naïve)
EPs:
2006: The Article 3 (EmArcy)
Singles:
1993: "Dred Loc" (Maverick)
1993: "If That's Your Boyfriend (He Wasn't Last Night)" (Maverick)
1993: "Outside Your Door" (Maverick)
1994: "Call Me" (Maverick)
1996: "Who Is He And What Is He To You" (Maverick)
1996: "Leviticus: Faggot" (Maverick)
1997: "Stay" (Maverick)
1999: "Grace" (Maverick)
2002: "Pocketbook" (feat. Missy Elliott, Tweet, & Redman) (Maverick)
2002: "Earth" (Maverick)
2007: "Lovely Lovely" (Maverick)
_______________________________________________________________
Me’shell Ndegéocello — Comet Come to Me (2014) |
Me’shell Ndegéocello — Comet Come to Me
°•° Celebrated multi-genre bass player who also writes and records as a solo artist.
“A lot of times the failures make me better. I love to learn from my mistakes–the best way to really improve upon things. I’ve learned to surround myself with better people. People who would love me if I was a car mechanic or something. Just the things that aid me in writing is just quiet time and space. A good home life, and good food. Simple living. I don’t do well in chaos.”M.N.
Birth name: Michelle Lynn Johnson
Born: August 29, 1968 in Berlin, Germany
Location: Washington, D.C., United States
Instruments: Vocals, bass
Album release: June 3, 2014
Record Label: Naïve
Duration: 46:17
Tracks:
01 Friends 5:18
02 Tom 2:53
03 Good Day Bad 4:16
04 Forget My Name 4:21
05 And Yet It Moves 0:29
06 Comet, Come to Me 4:39
07 Continuous Performance 3:22
08 Shopping for Jazz 2:47
09 Conviction 3:41
10 Folie a Deux 3:37
11 Choices 3:58
12 Modern Time 4:27
13 American Rhapsody 2:48
Written by:
01 Whodini
02 Doyle Bramhall / Chris Bruce / Tom Mediodia / Meshell Ndegeocello
03 Chris Bruce / Meshell Ndegeocello
04 Chris Bruce / Jebin Bruni / Elizabeth Lea / Meshell Ndegeocello
05 Jebin Bruni
06 Chris Bruce / Meshell Ndegeocello / Gabe Noel / Shara Worden
07 Peter Davis / Kenneth Fearing / Meshell Ndegeocello
08 Chris Bruce / Jebin Bruni / Chris Connelly / Earl Harvin / Meshell Ndegeocello
09 Chris Bruce / Meshell Ndegeocello / Kaveh Rastegar
10 Sami Amatus / Meshell Ndegeocello
11 Eric Elterman / Otto Hauser / Meshell Ndegeocello
12 Chris Bruce / Jebin Bruni / Stacy-Ann Chin / Meshell Ndegeocello
13 Peter Davis / Kenneth Fearing / Meshell Ndegeocello
Album Moods: Anguished/Distraught Dramatic Dreamy Gentle Intimate Passionate Reflective Restrained Soft/Quiet Sophisticated Striding Bitter Yearning Tender Warm
CREDITS:
•τ• Sami Amatus Composer
•τ• Mel Barat Design
•τ• Doyle Bramhall Composer, Guitar, Vocals
•τ• Chris Bruce Bass, Composer, Guitar
•τ• Jebin Bruni Composer, Keyboards, Programming
•τ• Stacy-Ann Chin Composer
•τ• Chris Connelly Composer
•τ• Peter Davis Composer
•τ• Eric Elterman Composer
•τ• Kenneth Fearing Composer
•τ• Amp Fiddler Synthesizer Bass
•τ• Paul Hamann Art Direction
•τ• Earl Harvin Composer
•τ• Sylvester Earl Harvin Drums, Percussion
•τ• Otto Hauser Composer
•τ• Elizabeth Lea Composer
•τ• Tom Mediodia Composer
•τ• Pete Min Engineer, Mastering, Mixing
•τ• My Brightest Diamond Vocals
•τ• Meshell Ndegeocello Composer
•τ• Gabe Noel Cello, Composer
•τ• Kaveh Rastegar Bass, Composer
•τ• Jason Rodgers Photography
•τ• Secret Weapon Executive Producer
•τ• Smoke & Mirrors Producer
•τ• Whodini Composer
•τ• Jonathan Wilson Guitar
•τ• Shara Worden Composer
Review by Andy Kellman; Score: ****
•τ• Comet, Come to Me, like Devil's Halo, involves a cover of a hit released during Meshell Ndegeocello's teenage years. Having ignited Ready for the World's 1985 slow jam "Love You Down," placed in the middle of her 2009 album, she boldly begins here with a cold-blooded update of Whodini's "Friends" that swirls and pierces. It sets the tone for 11 originals that are largely subdued but fraught with assorted forms of heartache and internal discomfort — unresolved grievances, somber resolutions, candid confrontations. Backed mostly by superhuman drummer Earl Harvin and long-term keyboardist Jebin Bruni, with less frequent contributions from Chris Bruce, My Brightest Diamond, Amp Fiddler, and Doyle Bramhall, among others, the album plays out like a continuation of Devil's Halo and 2011's Weather, with well-defined and uncluttered songs that have subtle and artful touches and twists. Lyrically, this is Ndegeocello at her rawest. In the hushed desert blues of "Good Day Bad," she reveals, "I am haunted late at night and no one cares to ask me how I feel/My only friend's my flask," then notes "Wish I knew my momma, wish I could forgive my dad." Not even the three songs anchored in throbbing reggae rhythms — "Forget My Name," the title track, and "Modern Time" — evoke emotional ease, as Ndegeocello's verses hinge on words like slaughter, pretending, and thrashing. During the album's latter half, a pair of career highlights are set back to back. The rolling "Conviction" is a dismissal delivered casually, almost sweetly, while "Folie a Deux," accented with a soft vibraphone refrain, opens with an offhanded "Don't be sentimental, call me hateful and cold/I just don't love you no more." Somewhat benevolently, "American Rhapsody" acts as a relatively restful finale. While listeners will have to wait a little longer for a break in the clouds, Ndegeocello and her associates have soundtracked yet another emotional storm in vivid, enthralling fashion.
Artist Biography by Greg Prato
•τ• Although Meshell Ndegeocello scored a few hits early in her career, the bassist, singer, and songwriter later opted to concentrate on more challenging material by exploring the politics of race and sex, among other topics. From her 1993 Maverick label debut through her releases of the 2010s for Naive, she built a discography of recordings that defied classification through progressive mixtures of jazz, R&B, hip-hop, and rock. Initially held in regard primarily for her bass playing and bold lyrics, her songwriting, which often examined dark interpersonal issues, was just as exceptional.
•τ• Michelle Lynn Johnson, born on August 29, 1968, spent the first few years of her life in Germany. Her father was both a military man and a jazz saxophonist. She relocated with her family to Virginia in the early '70s. As a youngster, Johnson developed an interest in music; during her teenage years, she began to play regularly in the clubs of Washington, D.C., but eventually settled down in New York City after a stint of studying music at Howard University. By this point, she was going by Me'Shell Ndegéocello — her adopted last name Swahili for "free like a bird." After auditioning for several bands, including Living Colour, Ndegéocello struck out on her own and often performed solo with just a bass, drum machine, and keyboard. In the early '90s, she was one of the first artists signed to Madonna's Warner-affiliated Maverick label.
Ndegéocello's debut album, 1993's Plantation Lullabies, was produced with David Gamson, as well as with André Betts and Bob Power, and involved input from a wide range of musicians, including DJ Premier, Joshua Redman, Bill Summers, Wah-Wah Watson, and David Fiuczynski. An impressive first album, it spawned the hit "If That's Your Boyfriend (He Wasn't Last Night)" and received three Grammy nominations. A duet with John Mellencamp on a cover of Van Morrison's "Wild Night," released a year later, brought her more mainstream attention; it peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100.
•τ• Almost three years passed between the release of Ndegéocello's first and second albums, but during the wait, she collaborated with Chaka Khan on the track "Never Miss the Water," and she appeared on movie soundtracks (White Man's Burden, Money Talks) and on such multi-artist releases as Ain't Nuthin' But a She Thing and Lilith Fair, Vol. 3. Peace Beyond Passion finally saw release in 1996, peaked higher on the Billboard 200 (at number 63), and was also nominated for a Best R&B Album Grammy. •τ• It´s cover of Bill Withers' "Who Is He (And What Is He to You?)" topped Billboard's club chart. Produced by Gamson, it featured a longer list of noted associates, including several heard on the debut, as well as Billy Preston, Bennie Maupin, David Torn, Wendy Melvoin, and Paul Riser.
•τ• Another three-year break between albums occurred, during which time she collaborated with rapper Queen Pen on the track "Girlfriend." Bitter, for which she was billed as Meshell Ndegéocello, was released in 1999. She took another three-year break and emerged with Cookie: The Anthropological Mixtape — as Meshell Ndegeocello — in 2002. Comfort Woman followed in 2003 and Dance of the Infidel, a sprawling album made with numerous collaborators from the jazz world, surfaced in 2005. Two years later, her fantastic Decca debut, The World Has Made Me the Man of My Dreams, which included guest appearances from Pat Metheny and Oumou Sangare, was released.
•τ• Her first pop-related recording in half a decade, 2009's Devil's Halo featured Ndegeocello in a quartet setting. The album also included guest spots from Lisa Germano and Oren Bloedow. Ndegeocello toured the album in opera houses and concert halls across the United States and Europe. In 2011, she partnered with Grammy-winning producer Joe Henry for the album Weather; it was issued on the Naïve label. In 2012, Ndegeocello released Pour une Âme Souveraine: A Dedication to Nina Simone, a collection of tunes intimately associated with the legendary vocalist and pianist. Comet, Come to Me, another deep set of introspective songs, followed in 2014.
Website: http://www.meshell.com/site/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/MeshellOfficial
Twitter: https://twitter.com/officialmeshell
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/officialmeshell
Tumblr: http://officialmeshell.tumblr.com/
INTERVIEW: The Couch Sessions: Interview by Stone and KDotScribe
:: http://www.thecouchsessions.com/2009/10/interview-meshell-ndegeocello/
Discography:
Studio albums:
1993: Plantation Lullabies (Maverick)
1996: Peace Beyond Passion (Maverick)
1999: Bitter (Maverick)
2002: Cookie: The Anthropological Mixtape (Maverick)
2003: Comfort Woman (Maverick)
2005: The Spirit Music Jamia: Dance of the Infidel (Shanachie)
2007: The World Has Made Me the Man of My Dreams (EmArcy)
2009: Devil's Halo (Downtown)
2011: Weather (Naïve)
2012: Pour une Âme Souveraine: A Dedication to Nina Simone (Naïve)
2014: Comet, Come to Me (Naïve)
EPs:
2006: The Article 3 (EmArcy)
Singles:
1993: "Dred Loc" (Maverick)
1993: "If That's Your Boyfriend (He Wasn't Last Night)" (Maverick)
1993: "Outside Your Door" (Maverick)
1994: "Call Me" (Maverick)
1996: "Who Is He And What Is He To You" (Maverick)
1996: "Leviticus: Faggot" (Maverick)
1997: "Stay" (Maverick)
1999: "Grace" (Maverick)
2002: "Pocketbook" (feat. Missy Elliott, Tweet, & Redman) (Maverick)
2002: "Earth" (Maverick)
2007: "Lovely Lovely" (Maverick)
_______________________________________________________________