Rhiannon Giddens with Francesco Turrisi – There Is No Other
Nonesuch – 3 May 2019
Ten Thousand Voices, and I can hear them all having their say in the one voice of Rhiannon Giddens. The self-penned opening track to the album ‘There is No Other’ is startling. I thought that her partnership in 2017 with legendary producer T Bone Burnett was something special, but this blows the roof clean off it. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s rewind…
Over five rainy days in Dublin, (I’m guessing it was raining) and the incredible team gathered in the city’s famous Windmill Lane Studios. Alongside Rhiannon Giddens was the Italian virtuoso of all kinds of ethnic instruments, Francesco Turrisi. Behind the faders was a multi-Grammy-winning engineer Ryan Freeland who is the reason some albums by Ray LaMontagne, Bonnie Raitt, The Barr Brothers and the Milk Carton Kids sound as good as they do. He’s also the first call of Joe Henry, a songwriter whose songs I have to say, I don’t think I have ever heard (it will be rectified). Yet as a producer, many of his albums sit on my shelves, and they are ones I often reach for.
Gonna Write me a Letter is an old tune of Ola Belle Reed, someone that Giddens must respect enormously. Both exceptional banjoists, storytellers and owners of incredibly strong and pure vocals. The sound opens up here with the help of Kate Ellis on cello. An exceptional musician, and with fans ranging from Bobby McFerrin to Steve Reich, she fortifies certain songs throughout the album.
A song that I thought was forever ruined for me by Eva Cassidy suddenly has a brand new lease of life. I certainly never thought Wayfaring Stranger would make my spine tingle but there ye go. Turrisi’s accordion and Gidden’s banjo blend so well together, and her voice is feeling every note and syllable. The title track There is no Other is an instrumental, yet possibly my favourite of the album. The intensity between the banjo and drum is electrifying. In regards to different musical cultures combining, it’s like they have picked up where Ry Cooder and Ali Farka Touré left off.
Trees on the Mountains is from ‘Susannah’, an opera by American composer, Carlisle Floyd. It’s just such a pleasure to listen to. Giddens this time showing her class on an octave violin, dancing with the cello of Kate Ellis, while Turrisi takes us on a roller-coaster ride of beautiful chords and textures on the piano.
Do Giddens’s talents know no end? I believe she is singing perfectly in Greek in Pizzica Di San Vito, and the energy captured between the duo is frightening. With almost one single note droning on her banjo and Turrisi’s various percussion, they exert more power than Spinal Tap on a good day. The strength and conviction continue with Oscar Brown Jnr. Brown Baby.
It makes me glad, you gonna have things that I’ve never had
When out of men’s heart, all hate is hurled
Sweetie, you gonna live in a better world
Brown Baby
‘How do we start it’ Turrisi asks politely. ‘I dunno…’ Giddens replies before kicking straight in in a heartbeat. It kind of shows a lot of things. There are no tricks here, no sleight of hand. These are two incredible musicians who are virtuoso players, but their depth of knowledge in rhythms, scales and tonality from such a range of cultures is somewhat astounding, and a joy to listen to. Briggs’ Forró completely supports my point. Giddens scatting with Turrisi’s accordion is something I have to see live someday.
Little Margaret is the only track I think I would be happy to skip. The only reason I can put it down to is that Giddens has spent the whole album out of her comfort zone and flying off the seat of her pants, that all of a sudden she relaxes into a song that I guess she knows very well. One reason why this album is so special is the incredible performances the pair are drawing from each other. I am that spoilt as a listener that the first time they take their foot of the gas, I’m whining! Shame on me.
The tension returns however! Thanks in part to Turrisi squeezing notes from the accordion that Bernard Herman would die for. Black Swan is eerily unsettling, and beautiful.
I’m on my Way, I get to hear my first Joe Henry song (that I know of), penned by Joe and Rhiannon.
But I’ve only got the taste for something sweet as time
Not bottled on the table but still hanging on the vine
I don’t know where I’m going but I’m on my way…
Well, I’m afraid I do know where we’re going and it’s to the end. By the time I’d heard the first few songs on the album, I had an idea that they would be saving something special as a way to go out. An original from Giddens and American folk talent Dirk Powell, it really is the perfect ending for Rhiannon. After all her musical journey, she comes home with He Will See you Through.
The impeccable pairing of Turrisi and Giddens is something few would have foreseen, yet should not be overlooked. This is music at its most honest and primal, you can almost feel the walls of the studio shaking. Producer Joe Henry’s touch is invisible, which is why he’s one of the greats. Giddens must be a sponge, able to soak up music and song from all over the world but what is beyond me is how she still delivers in a way that is pure and true to her roots. Rhiannon Giddens is the absolute real deal and so is this album.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mGeUd3oGVqQ_wl6dqfOeeqXuwXWKQGdWI
There is No Other is out now. Order via Amazon (Digital/CD/Vinyl)