Songbird (Eva Cassidy album)

Songbird is a compilation album of songs by American singer Eva Cassidy. It was released through Blix Street on May 19, 1998, two years after her death in 1996.

Songbird
Compilation album by Eva Cassidy
Released	May 19, 1998
Length	42:51
Label	Blix Street
Producer	Eva Cassidy Chris Biondo
Eva Cassidy chronology
Eva by Heart (1997) Songbird (1998) Time After Time (2000)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Rolling Stone	[2]

Five tracks ("Wade in the Water", "Wayfaring Stranger", "Songbird", "Time is a Healer" and "I Know You by Heart") are from Cassidy's album Eva by Heart. Four tracks ("Fields Of Gold", "Autumn Leaves", "People Get Ready" and "Oh Had I a Golden Thread") are from her album Live at Blues Alley. The remaining track, "Over the Rainbow", is from the album The Other Side. The compilation album was certified Gold by the CRIA (50,000 units) in 2003.[3] It was certified Gold by the RIAA in 2001 and Platinum in 2008 for shipments in excess of one million copies.[4]

Background

In May 1996, Eva Cassidy released the live album Live at Blues Alley, which would be the last album released before her death six months later, at the age of 33. Near the end of Cassidy's life, local folk singer Grace Griffith sent a copy of the album to Bill Straw, the head of her label, Blix Street Records.[5] "It didn't take a genius to figure it out," Straw told The New York Times. "The moment I listened to that tape, I knew this was one of the best singers I'd ever heard."[5]

Straw approached the Cassidy family to put together a new album. In 1998, a compilation of tracks from Cassidy's three released recordings was assembled into what would become Songbird. This CD lingered in relative obscurity for two years until being given airplay by Terry Wogan on his wide-reaching BBC Radio 2 show Wake Up to Wogan, following recommendation by his producer Paul Walters. The album sold more than 100,000 copies in the following months. The New York Times spoke of her "silken soprano voice with a wide and seemingly effortless range, unerring pitch and a gift for phrasing that at times was heart-stoppingly eloquent."[5]

Chart performance

The album was originally released in 1998, eighteen months on from Cassidy's death. At this point, she was virtually unknown in the United Kingdom and Songbird only charted in the nether-regions of the UK Albums Chart. Two years after the album's release, however, Cassidy's music was brought to the attention of British audiences when her versions of "Fields of Gold" and "Over the Rainbow" were played by Mike Harding and Terry Wogan on BBC Radio 2.[6] Following the overwhelming response, a camcorder recording of "Over the Rainbow", taken at Blues Alley in Georgetown, Washington, D.C. by her friend Bryan McCulley, was shown on BBC Two's Top of the Pops 2.[7] Shortly afterwards, Songbird climbed to the top of the UK Albums Chart.[8] It ended up being the eighth biggest-selling album of 2001, has been certified 6× Platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) and has to-date sales of 1.84 million.[9]

Track listing

#	Title	Written by	Length
1.	"Fields of Gold"	Sting	4:42
2.	"Wade in the Water"	Traditional	4:02
3.	"Autumn Leaves"	Joseph Kosma, Johnny Mercer, Jacques Prévert	4:41
4.	"Wayfaring Stranger"	Traditional	4:26
5.	"Songbird"	Christine McVie	3:43
6.	"Time Is a Healer"	Diane Scanlon, Greg Smith	4:16
7.	"I Know You By Heart"	Eve Nelson, Scanlon	3:59
8.	"People Get Ready"	Curtis Mayfield	3:16
9.	"Oh, Had I a Golden Thread"	Pete Seeger	4:49
10.	"Over the Rainbow"	Harold Arlen, E.Y. Harburg	4:57

The tracks from Live at Blues Alley sound like studio cuts because Cassidy's stage patter and the audience applause have been removed.

Personnel

• Eva Cassidy – guitar, keyboards, vocals, producer, arranger
• Chris Biondo – bass, rhythm guitar, producer, drum programming
• Dan Cassidy* – violin
• Hilton Felton – organ
• John Gillespie – organ
• Keith Grimes – lead electric guitar
• Raice McLeod – drums
• Larry Melton – upright bass
• Mike Stein – violin
• Chris Walker – trumpet
• Lenny Williams – piano
• Kent Wood – organ, producer

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts Chart (1998–2001) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA)[10] 42 Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[11] 9 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[12] 52 Irish Albums (IRMA) 1 New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[13] 25 Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[14] 7 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[15] 2 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[16] 2 UK Albums (OCC)[17] 1 US Top Catalog Albums (Billboard)[18] 1

Year-end charts Chart (2001) Position UK Albums (OCC)[19] 8 Decade-end charts Chart (2000–09) Position UK Albums (OCC)[20] 44 Certifications Region Certification Certified units/sales United Kingdom (BPI)[21] 6× Platinum 1,840,000[9]

References

1. AllMusic review
2. "Rolling Stone review". Retrieved 26 May 2019.
3. "Gold & Platinum Certification – September 2003". Canadian Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original on 2010-07-29. Retrieved 2010-08-21.
4. "Gold & Platinum Certification". RIAA. Archived from the original on 2013-02-25. Retrieved 2010-09-04.
5. Ward, Alex (12 August 2002). "In Death, A Shy Singer Finally Grabs The Spotlight; CD's Carry Eva Cassidy's Voice a Wider Audience". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
6. Chu, Jeff (23 April 2001). "Over the Rainbow Fans are finally discovering Eva Cassidy's legacy of soulful song". Time. ISSN 0040-781X. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
7. Keller, Julia (24 June 2001). "Eva Cassidy died at 33, and you can't hear her recording of 'Over the Rainbow' without thinking about her death. You just can't. She's the latest artist to exemplify our emotional tie to tragic endings". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 26 May 2019.
8. "Eva Cassidy: A Musical Soul - Arts and Entertainment - BBC World Service". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 26 May 2019.
9. Copsey, Rob (6 March 2020). "The UK's Official Top 100 biggest albums by female artists of the century". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
10. "Australiancharts.com – Eva Cassidy – Songbird". Hung Medien.
11. "Danishcharts.dk – Eva Cassidy – Songbird". Hung Medien.
12. "Dutchcharts.nl – Eva Cassidy – Songbird" (in Dutch). Hung Medien.
13. "Charts.nz – Eva Cassidy – Songbird". Hung Medien.
14. "Norwegiancharts.com – Eva Cassidy – Songbird". Hung Medien.
15. "Swedishcharts.com – Eva Cassidy – Songbird". Hung Medien.
16. "Swisscharts.com – Eva Cassidy – Songbird". Hung Medien.
17. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
18. "Eva Cassidy Chart History (Top Catalog Albums)". Billboard.
19. "End of Year Album Chart Top 100 - 2001". Official Charts Company. 31 December 2001. Retrieved 18 October 2018.
20. "The Noughties' Official UK Albums Chart Top 100". Music Week. London, England: United Business Media: 19. 30 January 2010.
21. "British album certifications – Eva Cassidy – Songbird". British Phonographic Industry. Select albums in the Format field. Select Platinum in the Certification field. Type Songbird in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.