Imagine (LP)

The late Eva's interpretations of popular/jazz standards, soulful songs.

'Imagine' once again showcases the incredible vocal talents of the late Eva Cassidy as she interprets a selection of popular and jazz standards plus other soulful songs, all previously unreleased. Two of the songs on 'Imagine' are from one-take recordings Eva made as demos for nightclubs where she hoped to play solo engagements.

"At her best with just her own accompaniment, Cassidy shines brightest on Imagine, It Doesn't Matter Anymore, Tennessee Waltz and Early Morning Rain where her acoustic finger-picking sparkles and flows effortlessly under melodies well-suited to her voice. Pop tunes at heart, each of these is subtly re-shaped as a contemporary folk show-stopper, with the kind of performances that make audiences feel guilty about breaking the fragile time-stopping magic by breathing too loud. If there's one song in this world that sets great pretenders apart from transcendently brilliant singers, it's the album's closer, Danny Boy. Routinely mutilated every Saturday night by sentimental Celtic drunks from Kilarney to Kirkcaldy, the song has acquired a reputation as perhaps the most cringe-worthy traditional Irish air ever written.

Unable to deal with its heart-wrenching mix of resignation, death and eternal love, 99% of all known interpreters, amateur and professional alike, will over-emote Danny Boy for all they're worth. Eva Cassidy's version, which closes this album, is an object-lesson in how to get it right. Recorded live in 1994 with just her voice and guitar, a beautifully judged combination of emotional restraint and understated but idiosyncratic phrasing gives Danny Boy a setting in which it can deliver the impact its long-forgotten writer intended."
- MOJO

"It Doesn't Matter Anymore," the opening track of the album, was taped at Pearl's Restaurant in Annapolis, probably in 1994. Eva's father, Hugh Cassidy, told me he thinks this song will be a hit. "It's catchy, it grabs the listener immediately." The song was written by Paul Anka and recorded by Buddy Holly, but I believe Eva learned it from a Linda Ronstadt album (she also used to sing "Desperado").

* "Fever" on this album is very different from the duet version on THE OTHER SIDE. Eva's brother Dan Cassidy's fiddle is featured in this recording, which was also part of Dan's solo album DAN CASSIDY ON THE FIDDLE (available only in Iceland). Bill Straw of Blix Street Records says he especially enjoys this version of "Fever" because it is such a contrast to most recordings of this much-covered song, "more reminiscent of the 1956 Little Willie John original R&B hit than the Peggy Lee pop cover."

* "Who Knows Where the Time Goes?" was taped at the Maryland Inn on the same night as two of the songs on the TIME AFTER TIME album. Chris Biondo told me in 2000, "She was playing at the Maryland Inn and had asked me to bring my DAT machine. We hooked it up to the mixing board. I think it was in the winter of 1995. We had a violin player sitting in with the band who had never played with us before...." That violinist, Bruno Nasta, is heard on this song. None of Eva's friends remember anything specific about Eva being a Sandy Denny fan, but years later Chris Biondo found a cassette tape labelled "Sandy Denny," in Eva's handwriting, under the seat of his truck. "Who Knows" was one of the songs on the tape.

* "You've Changed" is another "repeat" song in that a duet version is part of the album THE OTHER SIDE. As a solo, it was a standard in Eva's repertoire with the band, and she sang it at Blues Alley the night the live album was recorded. It was videotaped, and I have written a short description of her introduction to that song, with photos, which you can read here. The eloquent piano-playing of Lenny Williams is featured.

* The title song, "Imagine," is Eva's own rendition of the famous pacifist anthem by John Lennon. This recording was made at Chris Biondo's studio. He recalls, "Eva was interested in trying to get into Reynolds Tavern and a few other clubs like that. She wanted to make a demo tape to drop off for the people who booked the clubs. She came into the studio on two different days and sang ten or twelve songs, three or four times each. They were all shorter versions so as not to bore the club owners. Besides 'Imagine' and 'Tennessee Waltz,' she did 'Wade in the Water,' 'Kathy's Song,' 'Songbird,' 'The Bold Young Farmer,' and a few others."
"The way 'Imagine' got into her repertoire," Biondo says, "is that we were out at a club called the Roxy, and a reggae group calld Dwata started their set off with 'Imagine' in reggae style. She decided that it would be a cool song to do."

* "Still Not Ready": The only completely unknown song on the album, "Still Not Ready" was written by Chris Izzi and Leo LaSota and recorded as a demo in 1987. "It's a very noir tune, a lot of pathos and feeling. It's got a haunting melody," says Hugh Cassidy, who had suggested that Izzi send his tapes to Blix Street Records for consideration for the album. I'll add more information about this song shortly!

* "Early Morning Rain" was a song Eva often performed on her solo engagements. This was taped at Pearl's, on a different night. The songwriter, of course, was Gordon Lightfoot.

* "Tennessee Waltz" is another studio demo (see "Imagine," above). Like "Early Morning Rain," Eva often performed it live.
As a teenager Eva had this novelty photo taken of herself posing with a cardboard picture of her hero. See also the "Eva's Birthday Page" for Eva's cartoon drawing of Stevie!

* "I Can Only Be Me" is a Stevie Wonder song from the movie soundtrack School Daze by Spike Lee, a filmmaker whom Eva greatly admired. Chris Biondo tells me that this recording was one of the earlier ones that he and Eva made together, and one of the first with Lenny Williams on keyboard. Stevie Wonder was one of Eva's idols, and Lenny shared Eva's enthusiasm: "I was a Stevie Wonder freak too. I remember she knew every tune, even stuff I thought was obscure she would know." Eva only ever recorded two Stevie Wonder songs, however - this one and an unreleased version of "Superstition" that Biondo describes as "funky." Bill Straw writes in the liner notes for the album, "If, according to her friends, one of Eva's life ambitions was to be a backup singer for Stevie Wonder, perhaps her dream will finally be fulfilled in reverse - if Stevie ever sings along with Eva's 'diva' version of his song."

* "Danny Boy" - yes, "Danny Boy." I know you've heard it a million times, but this is Eva's version, and it's my favorite song on this album. When Terry Wogan played it on his morning radio show on August 2nd, he said "If that doesn't turn you to jelly, nothing will," and "We should quit now - have heard many version of this song - none as beautiful as this one by Eva Cassidy."