Joyce Carr

Joyce Carr is a new discovery for me. Since acquiring this CD, I have listened many times. She has a beautiful voice, and she knows how to use it wisely. Her best tones are in the middle range. She stays there, weaving long notes in trumpet like lyric lines. I noticed this for the first time when listening to I GUESS I'LL HANG MY TEARS OUT TO DRY. Joyce has a way of drawing the listener into a song.When she sings, she is a storyteller from the heart.I originally purchased this recording because I was looking for something by Ellis Larkins, who accompanies her on the 2nd portion of this recording. As much as I enjoy the Larkins set, the initial set with the Bob Vigoda trio (interspersed with several numbers that are accompanied by a separate pianist only) is my favorite. I have always enjoyed the song YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT LOVE IS."Wait until you hear it here. All I can say is that Joyce Carr sings with a magic that transcends time and space.To accurately describe her vocal range, she would be an alto. Hers is not the higher range of someone like Linda Ronstadt, or the lower one of someone like Sarah Vaughn (although Sarah could sing quite high too). Having this beauty at midrange, and properly shaping the vowels, the effect is wonderful.I highly recommend this CD.

Ordered this CD for a my father after he heard only the last few words of one song from a Public Radio fundraiser. He has enjoyed her music over all others. This CD instantly became his favorite.He asked me to find more of Joyce Carr's music. I've checked and cannot find any other music she has recorded. So, at this point if anyone knows of other music (songs) recorded by Joyce Carr, i.e., if there is a Recording Engineer with some old tape, if someone knows of some rare live music recordings by Joyce Carr, please get it out in the public where it belongs.

Love kept Joyce Carr from travelling, so she sang at the same nightclub in Washington, DC for more than twenty years. Her phrasing and delivery of the lyrics put her among the best cabaret singers of the 20th century. Ellis Larkin, the famous New York pianist (Little Carnegie Tavern) accompanies her on half the tunes, Bob Vigoda the rest. You will never forget the first time you hear her.

wonderful voice! sorry I did not know of her before. wonderful shading and great music and songs!

Good Recording CD. Really Enjoy it

I first picked up an LP version of this disc about twenty years ago when I read a review in the now defunct "Stereo Review." I enjoyed it so much, I bought the CD version when it was issued. Joyce Carr is one of those singers like Johnny Hartman who was blessed with a wonderful voice and great musicality, but who never "made it big." All I can say is that I love this disc. It is ideal for snowy nights in a log cabin with a roaring fire and good brandy.One thing you must know. The second half of the CD was taken from an LP that Ms. Carr put out back in the 50's. The sound of the last half is not so hot. But the first dozen songs more than compensate. This is a CD that truly deserves more recognition and distribution than it is currently receiving.

I agree with all the praise for the album. I knew Joyce, but not as a singer. We were colleagues as court reporters in Washington, D.C. in 1976-78. Both of us were doing it in the wake of career dislocation. I was transitioning rom a failed academic career to law school. And I think her singing days were behind her by then. There was an air of sadness about her when she mentioned the singing. Wish I knew what had happened. I suspect a love affair gone wrong figured in it somewhere. I got ahold the record years later, and was blown away. I'd suspected she was good, but not that good. Now that she's gone, I'm glad this testament to her abilities exists.

I heard this album on Public Radio 10 years ago and it is still as fresh now as it was then. Joyce Carr is a rare singer who knows the words and does not stylize or overwhelm them. Mature, romantic, but positive-the listener has but to close their eyes, to find themselves in a small bristo, to fall in love with this singer.