ser franklin Archives - Ser Franklin

REVIEW: “Crowded places” by BANKS

July 29, 2017

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After such masterpieces titled “Goddes” and “The Altar”, Banks is back again with her stunning soft vocals to mesmerize us. You might probably find yourself tearing up listening to this song, which gives you such beautiful anxiety, of the ups and down that a relationship can bring, of the insecurities, the regrets, like the ones of someone choosing fame over love, and afterward having to face the fact that such choice has led them to lose the loved one.

I have personally been a big Banks fan ever since I’ve heard “Brain”, from her “Goddess” days, and i would also recommend to anyone who’s new with this great artist to start getting to know her from “Goddess” first (which has a closer sound to this track, therefore more approachable to new ears) and then move on to “The altar”, a more experimental project, but in no way less good nor interesting.

Listen to “Crowded places” by Banks below.

SARAH VAUGHAN appreciation by Ser Franklin

July 14, 2017

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(image by Anandanahu).

The one singer that Ella Fitzgerald used to call “the best singer of their generation”, singing jazz legend Sarah Vaughan is certainly a force to be reckoned with when it comes to vocal skills and interpretation. Sarah Vaughan’s rage was impressive, from almost man-like lows to very high falsettos, and a very distinctive vibrato. Her range of styles was just as remarkable, from tear jerker ballads of lost love such as “The thrill is gone”, all the way to up-tempo pop-ish numbers like “Broken hearted melody”, Sarah Vaughan could do it all, but her forte clearly (and rightfully) remains jazz, of course. After all, she’s still considered one of the jazz divas trinity of the 40’s/50’s, along with Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday, other two amazing singers, all with very distinctive and personal style. Sarah Vaughan is truly music royalty and a sometimes underrated diva.

listen to Sarah Vaughan's TOP 10 by Ser Franklin

ARETHA FRANKLIN appreciation by Ser Franklin

July 8, 2017

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(painting by by Stephen Holland).

In my opinion, just like for many others, Aretha Franklin is the greatest singer of all time. She has inspired countless other artists more than anyone else, from Whitney Houston to Mariah Carey, from Beyoncè to Christina Aguilera, her influence is all there. She can sing everything, from the slow poignant ballads to the most rhythm driven of uptempos, Aretha Franklin always delivers. Her incredible fierce vocal skills, her intuitively skilled piano playing, her stage presence, her attitude, everything screams DIVA, and a diva she is. I was personally always amazed by this incredible lady. Many say she is hard to handle, but i say “if i was her, i would be too”. She has contributed so much to the music industry, that if she wants to be capricious every once in a while, so be it. Aretha Franklin is music, she will always be the greatest one there ever was, the one and only “Queen of soul“! Halleluja

listen to Aretha Franklin's TOP 10 by Ser Franklin

ARTISTS SPOTIFY SPOTLIGHT PLAYLIST by Ser Franklin

July 8, 2017

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A good way to discover new artists….just click away and enjoy the music!!!

BILLIE HOLIDAY appreciation by Ser Franklin

July 6, 2017

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(painting by Jo King).

Simply my favorite jazz singer, and the one that made me fall in love with jazz music. I’ve always been in awe of her interpretative skills, of her perfect timing, of her poignant delivery. She didn’t have a huge vocal range, but with what she had, she could really work wonders. Billie Holiday had a very troubled lifestyle, and you could feel her pain pouring out of the lyrics she was tackling, almost in a poetic way, such as in “Good morning heartache”, but yet there was always that sparkle of hope and love that you could find looking hard enough, that we can find in “If the moon turns green”, at times also in a rare lighthearted way, such as in “Them there eyes”, Billie Holiday could take us through many journeys.

listen to Billie Holiday's TOP 10 by Ser Franklin

STEVIE WONDER appreciation by Ser Franklin

July 3, 2017

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(painting by Richard Day).

Blessed with a huge vocal range and a beautiful vocal tone, a cunning sense of lyricism in his writing skills, and a very unique and recognizable stage presence, Stevie Wonder is the perfect male vocalist in my opinion. He can sing about everything and anything, and it always sounds believable and genuine. And it doesn’t matter if it’s a funky uptempo such as the bouncy “You haven’t done nothing“, a slow tearjerker like “All in love is fair“, or a reggae-ish classic like “Master blaster“, his delivery is always on point. He can sing about unrequited love just as convincing as he can about social issues. Simply one of the best artists of the century. Listen below to my selections of favorites from Stevie Wonder’s catalogue.

listen to Stevie Wonder's TOP 10 by Ser Franklin

NINA SIMONE appreciation by Ser Franklin

June 30, 2017

appreciation, jazz, music blog, music legend, nina simone, ser franklin

(painting by Khairzul).

Every now and then, on the music scene, happens to appear an artist so versatile that you can barely categorize in any specific music genre, because they happen to excel in each and any one of them. Well, the so called “High priestess of music” Nina Simone happens to be one of those rare artists, with her immediately distinguishable vocal timbre and excellent piano skills, she stood out from all the rest up to a point where she should be in a category all of her own. In the selection i’ve picked, i’ve tried to highlight all of her multifaceted, outstanding and diverse efforts Nina Simone has shared with us throughout her long and critically acclaimed career. From slow tearjerkers like the opening and closing numbers “The other woman” and “End of the line“, to jazzy uptempo numbers like “Love me or leave me“, to sexy world music inspired numbers such as “See-line woman“, all the way to straight up blues like “Do i move you?“, and everything in between, all that she touched was gold, and she sure did, and still does, move us to the core.

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