Music to Remember Him By

Music to Remember Him By is an album by the American band Congo Norvell.[2] It was released in 1994. The band was led by Sally Norvell and Kid Congo Powers; the pair met via their involvement in Wim Wenders projects.[3][4][5]

Music to Remember Him By
Studio album by
Released1994
GenreAlternative rock, cabaret
LabelBasura!/Priority[1]
ProducerCongo Norvell, Mick Harvey
Congo Norvell chronology
Lullabies EP
(1993)
Music to Remember Him By
(1994)
The Dope, the Lies, the Vaseline
(1996)

Production

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The album was produced by Congo Norvell and Mick Harvey; their intention was to integrate cabaret and exotica into a rock sound.[6][7] Its songs are largely about friends lost to AIDS.[8][9] Music to Remember Him By was recorded in Joshua Tree and Echo Park.[10]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [11]
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide     [12]

Trouser Press wrote that "the postmodern coffee-house feel is, at times, an uncomfortably kitschy mix, but it's creepy and compelling just the same."[13] Stereo Review thought that Norvell and Powers "conjure a darkly poetic atmosphere redolent of Kurt Weill, Leonard Cohen, Nico-era Velvets—you know, the real spooky-cool stuff."[14] The Toronto Star praised "the David Lynchian dreamscape in the tunes."[15]

The Washington Post called the album "skillfully atmospheric stuff, although the melodrama of tracks like 'Mercy Mine' just narrowly skirts silliness."[16] The Philadelphia Inquirer noted "the gothic torch and twang of Powers and haunting vocals by chanteuse Sally Norvell."[17] The Boston Globe deemed Congo Norvell's sound "seductive [and] alluring, with blues and gospel elements."[9] The Boston Herald concluded that Congo Norvell's "quiet and seductive cabaret melancholia both soothes and chills, sending shivers up your spine while messing with your psyche."[18]

AllMusic wrote that "Norvell's singing, a low, sassy croon, shows she knows her jazz/blues roots well, bringing the appropriately passionate intensity to the group that it needs."[11]

Track listing

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No.TitleLength
1."Golden Gates" 
2."Drift Away" 
3."The Chosen One" 
4."Mercy Mine" 
5."Rock My Child" 
6."My Midnight" 
7."Long Time Woman" 
8."Shelter" 
9."Lola" 
10."Dried Flowers" 
11."Love" 
12."Lonesome Valley" 

References

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  1. ^ Morris, Chris (Feb 18, 1995). "Flag Waving". Billboard. Vol. 107, no. 7. p. 63.
  2. ^ Crouch, Lisa Marie (11 Oct 1996). "Mystery date". Lifestyle/Previews. The Record. p. 34.
  3. ^ Corcoran, Michael (March 13, 1994). "South X Southwest – Critics' Picks". The Dallas Morning News. p. 10C.
  4. ^ Slotek, Jim (July 18, 1995). "E.T.O.". Entertainment. Toronto Sun. p. 40.
  5. ^ Blush, Steven (October 4, 2016). New York Rock: From the Rise of the Velvet Underground to the Fall of CBGB. St. Martin's Publishing Group.
  6. ^ "Album reviews — In Memory of Him by Congo Norvell". Billboard. Vol. 107, no. 1. Jan 7, 1995. p. 84.
  7. ^ Hughley, Marty (March 10, 1995). "Congo Norvell Rocks with a Velvety Verve". Arts and Entertainment. The Oregonian. p. 4.
  8. ^ Reighley, Kurt B. (Nov 1996). "Music to Disremember Him By". CMJ New Music Monthly. No. 39. p. 18.
  9. ^ a b Sullivan, Jim (6 July 1995). "Melancholy match". Calendar. The Boston Globe. p. 23.
  10. ^ Powers, Kid Congo (2022). Some New Kind of Kick. Hachette Books. p. 238.
  11. ^ a b "Music to Remember Him By". AllMusic.
  12. ^ MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. pp. 264–265.
  13. ^ "Congo Norvell". Trouser Press. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  14. ^ Gore, Joe (Mar 1995). "Picks — Music to Remember Him By by Congo Norvell". Stereo Review. Vol. 29, no. 3. p. 137.
  15. ^ Stoute, Lenny (3 Aug 1995). "Sandbox, Blue Dog Pict and the lounge act from hell". Toronto Star. p. F8.
  16. ^ Jenkins, Mark (25 Nov 1994). "Kid Congo Fronts Supergroup". The Washington Post. p. N20.
  17. ^ Sherr, Sara (18 Nov 1994). "Congo Norvell". Features Weekend. The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 19.
  18. ^ Lozaw, Tristram (July 14, 1995). "Congo Cafe". Boston Herald. p. S13.