Reviews

Barbra Streisand “Live At The Bon Soir” Album Review

Live At The Bon Soir

Barbra Streisand

    • Genre: Pop
    • Date: 04 Nov, 2022
    • Content: Not-explicit
    • Region: USA
    • Track(s): 24
  • ℗ 2022 Columbia Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

“Live at the Bon Soir” is Barbra Streisand’s tenth live album. The songs were originally supposed to be Streisand’s debut album and were recorded over the course of three nights in November 1962, not long after she signed with Columbia Records. A 1963 studio album was released in place of the recordings. The live recordings, which were retrieved from Streisand’s vaults and remastered to mark the 60th anniversary of the original recording.

“Live at The Bon Soir” released on November 4, 2022, is exactly sixty years since Streisand’s debut recordings under contract with Columbia. Tiger Haynes on guitar, Avril Pollard on bass, John Cressi on drums, and Peter Daniels on keyboard made composed the backing band for Streisand. The Bon Soir recordings show Streisand’s artistry at its most personal, with the four musicians sacrificially supporting but never outshining her distinctive voice and manner.

Album Cover Art

Barbra Streisand &Quot;Live At The Bon Soir&Quot; Album Review, Yours Truly, Reviews, March 28, 2024

A young Streisand can be seen looking graceful in her white outfit as she stands before an audience on a stage which, of course, can’t be seen but certainly can be imagined. She turns her head with a smile to gaze gently upon a section of the crowd watching her while she and her now old-fashioned microphone bathe in the bright rays of the limelight as she goes Live at the Bon Soir.

Tracks and Features

The 24-track album opens with “Introduction by David Karaplik (Columbia records/My name is Barbra),” where the songstress is introduced by David amidst laughter and cheer, and she just gives a little taste of what the album contains while introducing herself to the audience in a melodious manner. The next track, “Much More,” has Barbra sonorously singing and painting a colourful picture that seems to express her surreal, love-themed imaginations. The classical instrumentation in the background make the song even better.

“Napoleon” is the next track and has this jazz-like rhythm to it while the vocalist sings about life and fate and in the same vein, also makes light jokes with names of famous people/places. The audience is thrilled as shown by their applause at the end of the track. “I Hate Music” comes next and she playfully affirms that she likes to sing but also hates what most folks call ‘music’ because to her, it is a lot of noise and is silly and a lot of other things that tick her off. And just like in a comedy show, the audience can be heard laughing at intervals as the track comes to an end.

“Lover Come Back To Me,” comes bearing this jazzy feel that compels you to move your body. The amazing vocalist delivers so beautifully and shows some fantastic vocal range as she sings and asks her lover to come back to her. The audience show appreciation for her dexterity and dynamism as the applause, as usual, ring out from all corners while the band switch the instrumentation’s composition as the song fades. “Soon It’s Gonna Rain” is a cool serenading track with piano chords that complement the vocalist excellently. She sings of life and love, makes references to rain and paints a great picture that acknowledges the existence of nature.

“When The Sun Comes Out” shares the same themes of love and relationship-related struggles while making references to nature’s beauty. She sings about a fair-weather lover who abandons her “in the rain” but ends up returning when the “sun comes out.” The jazz beat arrangement is classical to a fault and the audience enjoy every bit of it! The Album closes with “I Stayed Too Long at the Fair” and there’s so much laughter at the beginning of the track as she prepares to sing. The track comes with a nostalgic feeling as she sings about the absence of a lot of things she had wished were still present and running. She acknowledges that their absence may be as a result of her long-standing expectations for the unusual, nevertheless, she admits things must come to an end.

Tracklist

NO TITLE TIME
1 Introduction by David Kapralik (Columbia Records) / My Name Is Barbara 2:01
2 Much More 2:30
3 Napoleon 3:19
4 I Hate Music 1:16
5 Right As The Rain 2:46
6 Cry Me A River 4:11
7 Value 2:16
8 Lover, Come Back To Me 1:54
9 Band Introductions 2:56
10 Soon It’s Gonna Rain 3:42
11 Come To The Supermarket (In Old Peking) 1:51
12 When The Sun Comes Out 3:14
13 Happy Days Are Here Again 3:25
14 Keepin’ Out Of Mischief Now 1:54
15 A Sleepin’ Bee 4:03
16 I Had Myself A True Love 4:47
17 Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered 2:39
18 Who’s Afraid Of The Big Bad Wolf? 2:36
19 I’ll Tell The Man In The Street 2:49
20 A Taste Of Honey 2:23
21 Never Will I Marry 2:56
22 Nobody’s Heart Belongs To Me 2:14
23 My Honey’s Lovin’ Arms 2:10
24 I Stayed Too Long At The Fair 5:11

Album Theme

She recreated a diverse selection of tunes, giving them a personal touch, demonstrating her transforming abilities.

Production Credits

The live album was produced by Streisand, Martin Erlichman, and Jay Landers.

Stream

Back to top button