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Travelin' Light

Travelin' Light is the fourth and last album jazz singer and pianist Shirley Horn recorded in the '60s, before taking time away from the limelight to devote to family life. Thereafter she performed only occasionally in and around her home city of Washington D.C., until the first stirrings of a career revival in the late '70s. Her early records had been well-reviewed and earned admiration from her peers (no less a figure than Miles Davis singled out her debut LP Embers and Ashes in some rare public praise), but they had sold poorly.

I first heard of her via YouTube, having searched for versions of a song I'd taken a shine to called 'You're Blasé'. At length I got around to tracking down a copy of the album it had appeared on, i.e. this one. Specifically I bought a mid-'90s French-made CD re-issue. While not terribly rare, it's uncommon enough that it took me a while before I found an affordable copy. I think I ended up paying something in the £10-15 range. Throughout its dozen short tracks Horn performs as part of her own trio with bassist Marshall Hawkins and drummer Bernard Sweetney, aided by guests including Jerome Richardson (flute) and Kenny Burrell (guitar).

Horn's isn't an especially exuberant style, more a measured and calmly intense one. Her performing persona communicates the impression of considerable intelligence with a touch of above-it-all aloofness. In his well-written booklet notes, James Gavin aptly characterises her as having a "cool pastel voice". My favourite songs on the album (besides 'You're Blasé') include the breezily upbeat 'Sunday in New York' and the slyly suggestive 'Confession' where "she manages to sound risqué without getting a smudge on her white-gloved hands" (Gavin again).

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