Cassandra Wilson - Ride On

Drawing on songs by Charley Patten and Stevie Wonder as well as duetting with soul/R&B singer John Legend, Wilson combines both live tracks with studio material recorded in New Orleans. Shortly to set out on tour with Prince this month in the States, Wilson was on relaxed form as she talked to Kevin Le Gendre about how she looks above all to Stevie Wonder as a guiding light.

With the passing of Abbey Lincoln, jazz lost more than an original vocalist. There was also a composer who has left several pieces of real substance to future generations of players, especially those who are interested in learning something of the condition of both women, and humanity, in general, in a world full of complexities. Songs like ‘And It’s Supposed To Be Love’ and ‘Wholly Earth’, with their reflections on domestic violence and existential angst, appear anything but old.

At the mere mention of Lincoln’s name, Cassandra Wilson’s face lights up, and she spontaneously recalls a conversation with the late singer that gave her much food for thought. “She always talked to me about the importance of writing music in your time,” says Wilson. “And I’ll never forget how she once she said to me, ‘you know there are women that are being raped and that are dying out in the street, why don’t you write a song about that?’ I thought ‘oh, that’d be different to Irving Berlin,” she chuckles almost timidly, as if Lincoln were in the room. “It had a profound effect on me, just saying that to me. I realised that, yeah, even though I’m a jazz musician and I’m supposed to draw upon a certain tradition, there’s nothing really that should keep me from writing about what’s happening in my life today, in our lives today.”

This is an extract from Jazzwise Issue #148 – to read the full article click here to subscribe and receive a FREE CD...