Love – for better or worse - is the greatest musical theme of all time, and Dee Dee Bridgewater’s latest release for DDB/Emarcy/Universal titled Midnight Sun brings together eleven of the most romantic songs from her musical past. Love ballads like Johnny Mercer’s “Midnight Sun,” Kurt Weill’s “Speak Low,” Horace Silver’s “Lonely Woman” and Billie Holiday’s “Good Morning Heartache” gave us a glimpse of love in all its glory and sadness and now the GRAMMY and Tony Award-winning artist reinterprets the dramatic stories behind these great songs.
Midnight Sun is an exemplary compilation of songs that Dee Dee and her daughters – producer Tulani Bridgewater Kowalski and MTV-France Vee-Jay China Moses – selected from six of her most revered recordings which includes her 2010 GRAMMY winning album titled Eleanora Fagan: To Billie With Love From Dee Dee and her double GRAMMY Award winning album titled Dear Ella. Kowalski then teamed up with one of the music industry’s best music masters - Doug Sax – to oversee the re-mix and re-mastering of these spellbinding ballads.
About the making of Midnight Sun
In a recent telephone interview with Dee Dee Bridgewater at her home in Las Vegas, NV, Dee Dee said, “For years my fans and family had been asking me to compile a CD of my favorite love songs. So when my distributor- Decca Records/Universal Music Company – asked me to release a compilation recording I agreed. China and I came up with the songs from my back catalogue that I felt would gel musically and segue into the stories I wanted to tell. Then I left the production up to Tulani who ran with it with Doug Sax and Sunny Nam."
The songs are resplendent with Dee Dee’s exceptional vocal finesse and lush string arrangements. She exposes listeners to her ability to sing several styles including songbook standards, jazz standards and international folk music, such as the French traditional songs ”Que reste-t-il?” and “L’Hymme a la Amour.” “I like each one of these songs for different reasons. I’d look at an album like Keeping Tradition and played “Angel Eyes” and “The Island” or “Lonely Woman” from Love and Peace: Tribute To Horace Silver, and realized that these songs just spoke to me.”
“These songs also have great melodies, lyrics and stories…they are great love songs," says Dee Dee. As she immerses herself into each song, Dee Dee is capturing the essence of relevant experiences - not only hers, but experiences gleaned from people she knows and has researched. She brings those experiences to her eloquent interpretations and her reputation for singing the story behind the song and guiding them to GRAMMY nominations or winning status is justifiable.
Keeping her sound natural comes easy
When asked how she keeps her voice so beautiful and able to meet the demands of dissonant harmonies (she imitates a horn in one section of “Speak Low”) or to hit the required notes in the rich melodies that these songs have, Dee Dee’s story is one of both a devoted student and ardent listener. “Singing is something that came to me naturally. I eat properly get enough sleep and try not to overdue my routines.”
Although she is not formally trained and doesn’t read music, Dee Dee studied several techniques with Gladys de Jesus, a Cuban singing instructor who had come to hear her one night when Dee Dee was singing with the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra. “She was the first person I’d worked with who helped me with breathing from my diaphragm, singing over being hoarse, and how to project my voice,” says Dee Dee.
Working with Gladys de Jesus also helped Dee Dee make a smooth transition into musical theatre where she later won a Tony Award for her role as Glinda in the Broadway production of The Wiz.
Taking time to mentor younger singers and her definition of jazz
“Jazz is life. It’s taking your foundation, your melody and starting to improvise in concert with other musicians. It’s taking that foundation and evolving it…and then coming back to that foundation and completing the structure and new life that you’ve just given it. Jazz is life,” says Dee Dee.
When asked whether she would offer some thoughts and suggestions for crafting an effective repertoire for up-and-coming singers as well as those who may be struggling to release their first recording, Dee Dee replied, “I would say to a young singer, make a list of songs that appeal to you and from those songs pick the songs that really speak to you and have a similar thread to them or theme to what they are trying to put across. Also, pick material that their voice will marry great with. A lot of times a singer will pick a song that doesn’t agree with their voice. Also, bring something new to the material especially if the song is one that has been sung over and over again.”
Overall, Dee Dee Bridgewater has set a standard for success for up-and-coming jazz singers as well as many who are still struggling with their singing careers. Midnight Sun takes her amazing style to its zenith and reveals her creative depth and passion for captivating songs. Whether singing a tear-stained ballad or singing of love’s joy to an amorous lover – Ms. Bridgewater’s magic moments are heightened on this amazing compilation as she conveys the deepest emotions by interpreting standard lyrics in ways that bespeak life’s joys and difficulties.
Source:
Bridgewater, Dee Dee. Midnight Sun. Comp. Various Artists. 2011.
Bridgewater, Dee Dee, interview by Paula Edelstein. Midnight Sun: An Evening With Dee Dee Bridgewater (August 9, 2011).
