Name: All My Life
Brand: N2k Encoded Music
SKU: 129466
Availability: OutOfStock

Performer Notes

Personnel: Maysa (vocals); Bluey (acoustic & electric guitars); Tim Canfield, Jim Mullen (guitar); Chris DeMargary (flute, soprano & tenor saxophones); Ed Jones (alto & tenor saxophones); Dominic Glover (trumpet, fulgelhorn); Winston Rollings, Matt Coleman (trombone); Gary Sanctuary (Fender Rhodes piano, keyboards, vibraphone); Victor Redwood (keyboards, programming, background vocals); Graham Harvey, Daniel "Venom" Maunick, Ski Oakenful (keyboards, programming); Randy Hope-Taylor, Julian Crampton, Orfeo Orakwue, Richard Molyneux (bass); Richard Bailey (drums); Thomas Dyani-Akuru (percussion); Alex Rizzo (programming); Mark Anthony, Sara Brown, Veronique DeMargary, Hillary Mwelwa, Charlise Rookwood (background vocals).
Personnel: Maysa (background vocals); Jean-Paul "Bluey" Maunick (guitar, drum programming); Jim Mullen, Tim Cansfield (guitar); Gary Sanctuary (strings); Chris DeMargary (flute, saxophone, tenor saxophone); Simon Cotsworth (recorder); Ed Jones (saxophone, tenor saxophone); Dominic Glover (trumpet, flugelhorn); Matt Coleman, Winston Rollins (trombone); Graham Harvey (Fender Rhodes piano, harpsichord); Thomas Dyani-Akuru, Thomas Dyani (percussion); Veronique DeMargary, Sara Brown (background vocals).
Audio Mixers: Simon Cotsworth; Jean-Paul "Bluey" Maunick.
Photographer: Amanda Searle.
Five years passed between Maysa's self-titled debut album of 1995 and her next solo effort, All My Life. While Maysa ranged from decent to excellent, this consistently excellent CD is even stronger: more focused and more confident, yet more chance taking, more diverse, and totally unpredictable. All My Life gets off to a jazzy, Sade-ish start with "Got to Be Strong," which should please quiet storm enthusiasts. But Maysa, much to her credit, turns the album into a real R&B roller coaster by providing everything from club-friendly deep house on "Pressure" and "Hooked on Your Love" to hypnotic, British-sounding acid jazz on "Sunshine" and "Mirrors." And the singer really soars on an irresistible house interpretation of "The Bottle," Gil Scott-Heron's 1970s commentary on alcoholism in the inner city. So is the big-voiced Maysa really a dance diva at heart? A jazzy quiet storm/smooth jazz singer? A retro-soul belter? All My Life gives the impression that she's all of those things and more, and it's clearly among the finest, most exciting R&B releases of 2000. ~ Alex Henderson

Professional Reviews

JazzTimes (10/00, pp.120-1) - "...A rich collection of resonant stories....an intelligent, absorbing collection..."

Album: All My Life
#	Song Title	Time
1)	Got to Be Strong
2)	Mirrors
3)	Bottle, The
4)	Aria de la Mia Vita
5)	All My Life
6)	Pressure
7)	Sunshine
8)	Blue Light
9)	Shadows and the Light
10)	Hooked on Your Love
11)	Earth Child
12)	Compliments
13)	Closure
14)	[Untitled] - (hidden track)

Album: All My Life
#	Song Title	Time
1)	Got to Be Strong
2)	Mirrors
3)	Bottle, The
4)	Aria de la Mia Vita
5)	All My Life
6)	Pressure
7)	Sunshine
8)	Blue Light
9)	Shadows and the Light
10)	Hooked on Your Love
11)	Earth Child
12)	Compliments
13)	Closure
14)	[Untitled] - (hidden track)