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Harvey Taylor
A Planet Where Flowers Bloom, and Bombs Fall
Always down-to-earth but often breezy, calm yet intense, Harvey Taylor's
voice can sing simple praises to the planet's natural wonders yet slam
its senseless acts of war. Poet, composer and musician, Taylor's fifth
CD combines spoken-word compositions with his original music in a wide
array of styles. He manages to blend it all into an easy cohesion for
this two-CD set.
Latin riffs, Arabian rhythms, jazz, blues, electronica and even gospel
lend musical backdrops that enhance the poems' overall themes and
detailed nuances. Taylor's low, soothing voice complements the guitars,
percussion, strings and his own expert trumpet playing, whether meshing
as an ensemble or lending stark, solo accents. Often praised for
building collaborative communities of performing artists, Taylor worked
with more than 25 local musicians for this collection, including Paul
Cebar, Mike Kashou and Thacher Schmid.
Two back-to-back highlights illustrate the CD's war-and-peace theme. "O,
Little Town" is a chilling version of the Christmas carol about a
peaceful Bethlehem. Church bells chime out the familiar tune as Taylor
intones the words; he breaks off the lines to imitate bomb sounds (boom,
bam!). His rhythms hint that the little town in Palestine/Israel is
being blown apart with increasing violence as the years pass. On
"Peace," Ya Ya Kambaye's African instruments and vocals warble like warm
summer rain, and Thacher Schmid's joyful violin also lightens the mood
as the musicians accompany a heartfelt poem about a gentle friend.
—Julie Wichman
Copyright 2005 Shepherd Express. All Rights Reserved |
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