A Child Is Born (album)
| A Child Is Born | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 11, 2011 | |||
| Recorded | January 14–15 and April 27–28, 2011 | |||
| Studio | Union Country Performing Arts Center, Rahway, NJ and Klavierhaus, NYC | |||
| Genre | Jazz, Christmas | |||
| Length | 50:31 | |||
| Label | Motéma MTM-69 | |||
| Producer | Geri Allen & Kunle Mwanga | |||
| Geri Allen chronology | ||||
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A Child Is Born is an album of Christmas carols by pianist Geri Allen with vocalists recorded in 2011 and released on the Motéma label.[1]
Reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
| The Guardian | [3] |
| PopMatters |   [4] |
AllMusic awarded the album 4 stars, stating, "this is a holiday collection for the more adventurous jazz piano fan, rather than for someone looking for a safe, warm, and fuzzy set of jazzed-up Christmas tunes".[2] The Guardian review by John Fordham awarded the album 3 stars, noting, "Wherever you're coming from, this remains the work of a gifted improviser exploring timelessly haunting songs".[3] PopMatters reviewer Josh Langhoff said, "Geri Allen’s mostly-solo, mostly-jazz-piano album A Child Is Born flows through traditional Christmas songs and hymns with much facility, some invention, and a couple of surprises"[4]
Track listing
All compositions Traditional except where noted.
- "Angels We Have Heard On High" – 4:24
- "A Child Is Born" (Thad Jones, Alec Wilder) – 3:43
- "Imagining Gena at Sunrise" – 1:10
- "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel" – 7:31
- "Journey to Bethlehem" (Geri Allen) – 1:12
- "We Three Kings" (John Henry Hopkins, Jr." – 5:08
- "Little Drummer Boy" (Katherine Kennicott Davis) – 5:00
- "God Is With Us" (Allen) – 2:16
- "Amazing Grace" (John Newton/Traditional) – 2:43
- "Christmas Medley: Away in a Manger/What Child Is This?/Silent Night" (Traditional/William Chatterton Dix/Franz Xaver Gruber) – 4:32
- "Imagining Gena At Sunset" – 0:32
- "Let Us Break Bread Together" – 5:00
- "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear" (Richard Storrs Willis) – 6:24
- "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel" – 0:56
Personnel
- Geri Allen – Fazioli piano, celeste, Farfisa organ, Fender Rhodes electric piano, Hohner clavinet
- Carolyn Brewer (tracks 5 & 8), Connaitre Miller (track 8), Barbara Roney (track 8) – vocals
- Farah Jasmine Griffin – spoken word (track 5)
- Women Of the Gee's Bend Quilt Collective sampled and engineered by Jaimeo Brown (track 4)
References
- ^ Geri Allen catalog, accessed July 2, 2014
- ^ a b Ruhlmann, W., Allmusic Review accessed June 30, 2014
- ^ a b Fordham, J., The Guardian Review, December 23, 2011
- ^ a b Langhoff, J., PopMatters Review, December 11, 2011