AUDIO REVIEW - Cyrus Chestnut: Cyrus Plays Elvis
Cyrus Chestnut
Cyrus Plays Elvis
Koch Records AD 4238
(www.kochentertainment.com)
The Baltimore-born jazz pianist Cyrus Chestnut zestfully interprets Elvis Presley hits such as "Love Me Tender," "Graceland," and "In the Ghetto" on this new CD, which aims to "dig deep into the spiritual force that drives music," says Chestnut.
Chestnut's introduction to music was at Baltimore's Mount Calvary Star Baptist Church, where his father played hymns on the piano as the choir sang. Chestnut recalls, "My whole spirit of joy started right there."
Listeners will exult to the rhythmically fervent versions of Elvis's favorite hymns (such as "How Great Thou Art") as freshly interpreted on this new CD. They all fulfill the pianist's admitted goal - to "uplift the human experience" through pensive force and sheer dynamism.
The gospel roots of Elvis's superstardom have been documented in the 1989 book If I Can Dream: Elvis' Own Story by Larry Geller (Simon & Schuster), but Cyrus Chestnut's dynamically soulful interpretations offer even more convincing arguments for the spiritual basis of the "King's" achievement.
Cyrus Plays Elvis
Koch Records AD 4238
(www.kochentertainment.com)
The Baltimore-born jazz pianist Cyrus Chestnut zestfully interprets Elvis Presley hits such as "Love Me Tender," "Graceland," and "In the Ghetto" on this new CD, which aims to "dig deep into the spiritual force that drives music," says Chestnut.
Chestnut's introduction to music was at Baltimore's Mount Calvary Star Baptist Church, where his father played hymns on the piano as the choir sang. Chestnut recalls, "My whole spirit of joy started right there."
Listeners will exult to the rhythmically fervent versions of Elvis's favorite hymns (such as "How Great Thou Art") as freshly interpreted on this new CD. They all fulfill the pianist's admitted goal - to "uplift the human experience" through pensive force and sheer dynamism.
The gospel roots of Elvis's superstardom have been documented in the 1989 book If I Can Dream: Elvis' Own Story by Larry Geller (Simon & Schuster), but Cyrus Chestnut's dynamically soulful interpretations offer even more convincing arguments for the spiritual basis of the "King's" achievement.
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