Love Songs

In a way, all of Phyllis Hyman’s songs were love songs, which makes the title of this 2006 collection somewhat misleading. Though it might seem generic, the music herein is anything but. In fact, what Hyman did went beyond any simplistic notion of a love song. She was demanding and admonishing and celebratory and lustful, often all in the same song, and often within the context of a gloriously snappy arrangement, as in “You Know How to Love Me,” “Don’t Tell Me, Tell Her,” and “Loving You—Losing You.” Though she became famous working in the context of R&B, Hyman was the heir to jazz singers like Nancy Wilson and Etta Jones. She could interpret the feeling of each word within a song and give each note color using only breath control. Her truthfulness and attention to detail made her a favorite collaborator of many accomplished musicians, including Norman Connors, Grover Washington Jr. (“Sacred Kind of Love”), and Michael Henderson (“Can’t We Fall in Love Again”). Her tumultuous personal life is reflected in her performances here, many of which exhibit the same tragic elegance that made Edith Piaf and Sarah Vaughan heroines to previous generations.