I like to remind folks of writers, films. and musicians who I am afraid, will be forgotten as time passes. I know, things change, and I have no urge to cling to the past but, neither do I want to forget brilliance. Laura Nyro was brilliant.
She started in the late 60s and was noted primarily as a song writer, writing major hits for Blood, Sweat and Tears, Barbara Streisand, Three Dog Night, and the 5th Dimension. People forget what a wonderful singer she was. Her music was a blend of pop, r&b, jazz, and rock and she had a voice you will not forget.
She was not comfortable performing live, although she did a bit more of that in her later years. She did record and I want to bring your attention to her first album, Eli and the Thirteenth Confession. The music is well orchestrated (she played piano) and the songs are incredible. The best? Eli's Coming, a fine bit of hard r&b with an incredible vocal. But, then again, maybe it's the great Stone Soul Picnic, or a fine hymn to the joy of drunkenness Sweet Blindness. The whole album bristles with intelligence and an energy you will seldom hear. This album is one of my favorites, ever, but all of her recordings are worth hearing.
She died at only 50 years of age, a victim of ovarian cancer. Her music should be remembered and it sounds as fresh and new today as it did all those years ago.
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