I remember the first time I heard her - Michelle Kwan was skating to her version of Fields Of Gold I think in the 2002 Olympics. Eva was an immense singing talent, largely unknown. All should look up her story and listen to her recordings, especially the live ones.

 

My wife has purchased several of her cds in the past. Very moving performer. Unfortunately no longer with us.

 

Mixed feelings for me. Her tragic destiny kind of doesn’t get out of my head. So a permanent sadness when I hear her.
Her version of Blues in the Night gets me crying for a while each time.
By the way, I became aware of her thanks to @mrpeebee on this forum a couple of years ago. What a great place to be.
So yes, I can only miss her.

 

By the way, I became aware of her thanks to @mrpeebee on this forum a couple of years ago. What a great place to be.

I think that was in 2014, when I posted an experiment to back the great Eva Cassidy on tenor in her wonderful "You've Changed" recording (see >this< old thread). Further in that thread you also posted a wonderful version backing Eva.

Mrpeebee and I seem to always love the same saxophone players and singers.
Definitely brothers from another mother! 🎷🎷❤

I've also noticed that Mark. We might have to do a DNA test!

 

Mrpeebee and I seem to always love the same saxophone players and singers.
Definitely brothers from another mother! 🎷🎷❤

 

I have to admit that I had never heard of Eva until the beginning of this year when I was trying out for jazz standards band and the singer, prior to my audition, had refered me to some of Eva's recordings for the way she wanted to play the tunes, among others the Cheek to Cheek cut posted by Mark.

I was pleasently surprised by Eva's expressiveness and the fact that she played with a real jazz rhythm section, in particular a drummer who was allowed to do more than a piano dsk dsk with the brushes. Eva reminds me very much of a Frank Sinatra swinging in front of a full blasting big band.

Then I googled her story and had the same weird feeling of disappointment and also bitterness I got when I accidentially stumbled across Zane Musa only to find out that he too had already passed at a much too young age.

The band thing didn't materialize in the end. When it was my turn to solo over Cheek to Cheek I tried to bring in some of the energy I had heard on Eva's version and the rhythm guys actually followed me, which I thought was great. However, the singer broke it off in the middle of the tune. Turned out she only wanted the dsk dsk with the brushes behind her and a shiny sax that is seen but not heard. It would have been a complete waste of time had I not been introduced to Eva's work that will stay with me for a long, long time. I still wonder though what had attracked the singer to Eva's versions of those standards.

 

Huge fan, too short a life. I covered her version of Time After Time

 

Yes, I hear the Lou Rawls in her timing. Thanks for bringing her to my attention. Gotta love Lou Rawls too. Every Christmas his is one of the first Christmas albums I listen to.

 

Thank you. His early jazz stuff is just incredible. Some of my absolute favorite vocal stuff.

 

Every year I put up videos from her just in case there are people here who haven’t heard of her.

thanks for posting this. I was not familiar with her before this post and now I'm hooked - going to be searching for more!

 

Me too! She was a great talent taken way too soon.

 

1st heard her version of Autumn Leaves and was very moved. I then searched for any tune she recorded.

 

Her appearances at Blues Alley was a serious asset for DC area.

 

My mind was totally blown the first time I heard Eva. She was amazing. She had a unique voice which felt so familiar. Yes she was taken from us way too soon.

 

Eva Cassidy is an artist you remember when and where you heard her first, like 9/11.
For me I was at a hi-fi store about 2007 when I heard Autumn leaves in the other room. Was totally struck by the song, since it’s one of my favorites, but this version totally diminished all other versions I’ve heard. Went home with the purpose to find out who the artist were and listen to more. Found out she had died way too young 10 years before. I felt empty.
Her versions of the songs she played are all awesome.
Just think of all versions of songs she didn’t have time to do that now never will exist!

 

Great singing K

 

I have always found her singing just… exceptional. Definitely someone I think is quintessential to listen to. As a matter of fact, that version of Cheek to Cheek was the model my wife wanted for the recessional piece at our wedding.

 

Hey Mark - me's hearin' ya'. Check-Out Lera Pim ewe-tube and Bandcamp -

too many tragedies - Minnie Ripperton / Janice of course

Katie Spencer is doing fabulous things these days - check her out -

enjoy

 

I recently had the opportunity to expose a small group of friends to Eva's wonderful music. So much fun. My friends had Google Music, so I called out Eva Cassidy's performance of Fields of Gold. That got everyones attention. She had that something special that is difficult to define. Pure beauty.

 

Learned of Eva Cassidy many years ago. Her version of "Over the Rainbow" at this same venue is the way
it should be done. I'm guessing I have listened to it a hundred times and it still chokes me up.

 

We all miss her.
Fun tune, but the band's solos don't have enough Eva in them.
Like another day at the office.

 

She's phenomenal! I've alway been struck by how she was able to take tunes that could really be schmaltzy in the wrong hands and strip them down to something so authentic and real.

 

I feel similarly about Karen Dalton and Judee Sill

 

"She whom the Gods love dies young."

I was out on a little island in the Central Pacific Ocean when I first heard Eva, back in the late 1990s.

I'd been jamming with some friends at the Seabees base when one of them pops in a CD, can't remember which now, with Eva's "Over the Rainbow", among other great tracks. I was completely bowled over, and remembered looking for her CDs on the Columbia House subscription service, about the only way to buy music when the nearest music store, on Guam, was 600+ miles away.

I think I ever only found one, "Songbird", listened to that over and over. BTW, the great thing about being on an island that used to be a U.S. "Trust Territory" is that it was part of the U.S. Postal Service, so the postal rates were APO/FPO, not international, although it took weeks for anything to arrive. Had all my Kodachrome stuff developed and delivered on domestic rates, too.

Now, with streaming on demand of all her albums, I can enjoy her phenomenal singing in HD, anytime, anywhere.

Kenneth

 

Lhasa de Sela ? ? ?

 

I don't remember when I first heard of Eva Cassidy, but I know it was a long time ago. I'm a huge fan and I enjoy introducing her to people who never heard her before. She has some ineffable quality for singing songs you've heard many times and finding something of her own in them, a certain emotional connection that no other singer has. Everybody who hears her is struck by that quality. She is the personification of how and why music can be so special, so magical.

 

❤❤❤❤❤❤