Esther Tusquets

Esther Phillips was perhaps too versatile for her own good, at least commercially speaking; while she was adept at singing blues, early R&B, gritty soul, jazz, straight-up pop, disco, and even country, her record companies often lacked a clear idea of how to market her, which prevented her from reaching as wide an audience as she otherwise might have.

'Women' by celebrated violinist and social media sensation Esther Abrami showcases the exceptional talent of 14 remarkable composers across history and a range of genres, spanning newly composed works and rediscovered masterpieces.

'Women' by celebrated violinist and social media sensation Esther Abrami showcases the exceptional talent of 14 remarkable composers across history and a range of genres, spanning newly composed works and rediscovered masterpieces. The album features Oscar winners Rachel Portman and Anne Dudley, as well as new arrangements of compositions by historic composers such as Pauline Viardot, Chiquinha Gonzaga, Teresa Carreño or Ethel Smyth. 'Women' also includes 'Transmission',an original composition by Esther Abrami, who has arranged several pieces on the album. At its heart is the world-premiere recording of Ina Boyle's 'Violin Concerto', a breathtaking, late-romantic composition. 'Women' brings together an extraordinary lineup of collaborators, including the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra under the baton of conductor Irene Delgado-Jiménez, pianist Kim Barbier, harpist Lavinia Meijer, and the Esther Abrami Quintet.

With few exceptions, greats who established themselves during soul's golden era were not well served by the disco era, when arrangements and material often poorly suited their abilities. Such was the case with the final two albums by Esther Phillips, Here's Esther…Are You Ready (1979) and Good Black Is Hard to Crack (1981), here combined onto one CD with historical liner notes.

Esther Rose was on a long solo drive when she started writing the opening title track of "Want", her stunning fifth album. At first, the words seemed almost like a joke, something to keep herself amused as the miles passed. “I want a puppy, but I don't want a mess. I want to know where I’m going without GPS,” she sang from behind the wheel. Soon, the idea snowballed into a list of desires that spanned existential, spiritual, and mundane; romantic to platonic to familial; at once wildly ambitious yet piercingly relatable; all set to a catchy melody that blends her pop instincts with country storytelling and the raw immediacy of a basement punk show. In other words, she was on her way to another classic Esther Rose song.

A platinum-selling singer, Esther Phillips had a long and storied career and all of her recordings for KUDU (sub-label of CTI) have something nice on them, but this is probably the best one. The credits for “From A Whisper To A Scream“, Esther’s 1972 Kudu debut - considered by many to be her finest album for the label - lists such renowned players as Hank Crawford on sax, Eric Gale and Cornell Dupree on guitar, Bernard Purdie on drums, Richard Tee on keyboards and Gordon Edwards on bass. Also enlisting the cream of background singers (Joshie Armstead, Hilda Harris and Tasha Thomas) giving Esther just the right vocal cushion for her blues-tinged interpretations of works by everyone from poet/singer Gil Scott-Heron and the great Marvin Gaye to New Orleans legend Allen Toussaint and soul man Eddie Floyd.

A platinum-selling singer, Esther Phillips had a long and storied career and all of her recordings for KUDU (sub-label of CTI) have something nice on them, but this is probably the best one. The credits for “From A Whisper To A Scream“, Esther’s 1972 Kudu debut - considered by many to be her finest album for the label - lists such renowned players as Hank Crawford on sax, Eric Gale and Cornell Dupree on guitar, Bernard Purdie on drums, Richard Tee on keyboards and Gordon Edwards on bass. Also enlisting the cream of background singers (Joshie Armstead, Hilda Harris and Tasha Thomas) giving Esther just the right vocal cushion for her blues-tinged interpretations of works by everyone from poet/singer Gil Scott-Heron and the great Marvin Gaye to New Orleans legend Allen Toussaint and soul man Eddie Floyd.

For her second solo recital album for Rubicon, Esther Birringer turns to Debussy with a recital that includes both books of his Images. Composed in 1901-5 (book 1) and 1907 (book 2), the composer was very pleased with Images, writing about the first set: “Without false pride, I feel that these three pieces hold together well, and that they will find their place in the literature of the piano… to the left of Schumann, or to the right of Chopin.”

A remarkable vocalist who could holler gritty R&B lyrics, bring soul to torchy ballads, add charm and wit to the standards of the American Songbook, and make a Beatles song almost her own, Esther Phillips was formidably versatile, equally at ease with jazz, soul, country, pop and rhythm and blues. Famous for her bittersweet vocal sound and distinctive phrasing she was, in the words of Atlantic boss Ahmet Ertegun “one of the best singers he had ever heard”. Signed to Atlantic in 1964, she released a series of well-crafted albums, arranged by the likes of Ray Ellis and King Curtis. Here is some of the best of her output for the label.