Birds - CD Album
CD Album
Since the band's inception in 2010, Barbara Snow and Tom Hannah have been diligently combining original song and spoken word with textures, sounds and rhythms from around the Western Hemisphere. Snow has a very direct approach to her composition, eschewing obscurity and aiming to please the public while maintaining a high degree of artistic integrity. For this album, Chico Chica enlisted the help of an all-Brazilian rhythm section to help bring about a truly exceptional work. It marks a growing maturity in this song-writing partnership. Tom Hannah's perceptive and well-crafted lyrics are the perfect companion to Barbara Snow's beguiling melodies and arrangements. Falling, Falling is a lament for the demise of what was once a soaring love affair. The creamy vocalising here is reminiscent of Sergio Mendes. The idea for title song Birds came about after Barbara Snow had a period of convalescence. She was lying on a bed next to a garden window. It was May and she listened to birdsong all day. The song is about what birds already know and that is the limitation of words. The song culminates in a la la section alternating with instrumental solos including one on marimba by Rob Millett. Ever Since You Found Me starts with bold percussive brushstrokes and leads on to catchy instrumental sections and a spirited flute solo from Hiilary Cameron. She and Barbara Snow share the lead vocal and this gives the song a soulful emphasis. The song is an expression of anticipation and desire. The Happy Pain of Love is a tightly arranged pop song is an expression of new love from the viewpoint of a world-weary realist. Barbara Snow sings the lead and plays a flugelhorn solo which is a model of pace, poise and energy. Flauta Charona is a rare Chico Chica instrumental. The interplay between Carlos Straatman's bass guitar and Hilary Cameron's flute is the essence of this jaunty melody which sounds as if it could be a theme tune for a light-hearted children's cartoon. Words and music by Chico Chica Chico Chica are: Hilary Cameron - voice, piano, keyboard, flute Tom Hannah - voice cavaquinho Barbara Snow - voice, flugelhorn Additional musicians: Carlos Straatman - electric bass Jansen Santana - percussion Xande -Oliveira - drums Rob Millett - marimba Recorded at Porcupine Studios, London Engineered, mixed and mastered by Nick Taylor with the help of Barbara Snow and Carlos Straatman.