more from
Anzic Records
We’ve updated our Terms of Use to reflect our new entity name and address. You can review the changes here.
We’ve updated our Terms of Use. You can review the changes here.

Laughing At Life

by DUCHESS

/
  • Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    Purchasable with gift card

      $9.99 USD  or more

     

  • Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

    Includes unlimited streaming of Laughing At Life via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    ships out within 3 days
    Purchasable with gift card

      $17.98 USD or more 

     

  • Record/Vinyl + Digital Album

    Includes the previously unreleased track Going Home featuring Oded Lev-Ari.

    Side A:
    Swing Brother Swing
    Laughing at Life
    Everybody Loves My Baby (Feat. Anat Cohen)
    Stars Fell on Alabama (Feat. Wycliffe Gordon)
    Hallelujah I Love Her (Him) So
    Going Home (Feat. Oded Lev-Ari)

    Side B:
    On The Sunny Side of the Street
    Creole Love Call (Feat. Wycliffe Gordon)
    Strip Polka
    Ev’ry Time We Say Goodbye
    We’ll Meet Again
    Dawn

    Includes unlimited streaming of Laughing At Life via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    ... more
    ships out within 3 days
    edition of 200 
    Purchasable with gift card

      $25 USD or more 

     

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
Strip Polka 03:07
12.
13.
14.
Dawn 02:07

about

Duchess – the trio featuring rising-star New York singers Amy Cervini, Hilary Gardner & Melissa Stylianou – has won hearts far and wide with its insouciant swing, sweet-toned harmonies and a stage presence that has proved irresistible to audiences from coast to coast, across Canada and even in Israel. In the words of The New Yorker, these virtuoso entertainers “traffic in delight,” as they channel the inspiration of vintage vocal trios into a fun-loving package that feels utterly up-to-date. Reviewing Duchess’s 2015 eponymous debut album, DownBeat declared the trio “a beacon of jovial esprit,” with Time Out New York praising the disc as “playful… elegant… winning.” Now Duchess presents its second album: Laughing at Life, to be released by Anzic Records on February 10, 2017. The track list includes beloved songs by Cole Porter, Johnny Mercer, Duke Ellington and Ray Charles, as well as lesser-known numbers given the infectious Duchess spin.

Produced, like the trio’s debut album, by arranger Oded-Lev Ari, Laughing at Life pairs Duchess with an ace New York band: pianist Michael Cabe, bassist Matt Aronoff and drummer Jared Schonig, plus saxophonist Jeff Lederer and guitarist Jesse Lewis. There are two guest stars: Anat Cohen (clarinet) and Wycliffe Gordon (trombone and vocals). Highlights of Laughing at Life include a finger-snapping take on the Billie Holiday/Count Basie number “Swing Brother Swing!” The band grooves beautifully behind the singers in “On the Sunny Side of the Street,” while Cole Porter’s ballad “Ev’ry Time We Say Goodbye” comes to life thanks to the purity of the Duchess vocal weave. And the trio presents the previously unrecorded “Dawn,” a mellifluous song co-written decades ago by Vet Boswell, youngest of 1930s close-harmony trio the Boswell Sisters of New Orleans, a key historic muse for Duchess.

Laughing at Life also includes a nod to the Andrews Sisters in Johnny Mercer’s “Strip Polka,” with a burlesque-worthy sax solo by Lederer. Cohen threads curlicues of clarinet through “Everybody Loves My Baby” (a popular feature for the Boswell Sisters in 1932), and Gordon contributes textured trombone and voice to his ravishing arrangement of Duke Ellington’s “Creole Love Call.” There are solo spots for each of the Duchess ladies, with Cervini taking the lead on Cole Porter’s sweetly risqué “Give Him the Oo La La,” Stylianou on Broadway-via-Carmen McRae number “Where Would You Be Without Me?” and Gardner on Peggy Lee’s customization of an iconic Ray Charles tune as “Hallelujah, I Love Him So.” The bonus track for the vinyl edition of Laughing at Life is “Goin’ Home,” Lev-Ari’s hushed arrangement of the spirituals-inspired melody from Dvorák’s “New World” Symphony.

credits

released February 10, 2017

Duchess is Amy Cervini, Hilary Gardner, Melissa Stylianou
Piano: Michael Cabe
Bass: Matt Aronoff
Drums: Jared Schonig
Guitar (Except 2,4,5,8,12)): Jesse Lewis
Tenor Saxophone (1,3,11,12): Jeff Lederer

Special Guests:
Clarinet (4,13): Anat Cohen
Trombone and Vocal (5,8): Wycliffe Gordon

Recorded May 26, June 4 & 14, 2016 at Sear Sound, New York NY
Engineered by Chris Allen
Mixed by Brian Montgomery
Mastered by Mark Wilder, Battery Studios, New York, NY

license

all rights reserved

tags

about

DUCHESS New York, New York

Sure-footed swing, sweet-toned harmony, and ever-insouciant charm are embodied in the vocal trio Duchess, comprising notable singers Amy Cervini, Hilary Gardner, and Melissa Stylianou. Blending the classic and the contemporary, they have performed at major festivals and esteemed venues throughout the USA, Canada, Europe, U.K., and Israel, earning a reputation for beautiful singing and big fun. ... more

contact / help

Contact DUCHESS

Streaming and
Download help

Redeem code

Report this album or account

DUCHESS recommends:

If you like DUCHESS, you may also like: