djzyonsevenFor my birthday this year, I had two songs battling it out to be the post of the day.
Donny Hathaway’s ‘A Song For You’ almost took it.
Almost.
But the one that won by just a hair is Luther Vandross singing ‘A House Is Not A Home’.
Now a lot of people don’t realize this song started with Dionne Warwick in 1964, written by the legendary songwriting team Burt Bacharach and Hal David. It was originally featured in the film Send Me No Flowers. A beautiful record already.
But Luther was a huge fan of Dionne and that whole Bacharach style of songwriting.
Then Luther got his hands on it.
His version first appeared on his 1981 debut album Never Too MUCH.
Later he turned it into one of the most powerful live performances you’ll ever hear, especially that legendary 1988 NAACP Image Awards performance where he just took the roof off the place.
The one I included today is ‘Live at the Wemberly’.
Which is also one of my favorite performances.
What always amazes me about Luther is the grace of his voice.
The control.
The emotion.
The way he slides into notes and stretches them like they were made just for him.
Luther never misses a note. Ever.
And on this song, you can hear him playing with the keys…
Bending the melody…
Reshaping the phrasing until the song becomes his completely.
That’s the genius of Luther Vandross.
He didn’t just cover songs.
He transformed them.
And for those who know me, you already know this man is my favorite male vocalist of all time.
Nobody does it like Luther.
So this is the record that gets the honor today.
The soundtrack to my birthday this year.
Turn it up loud.
Close your eyes.
Let Luther take you away.
#TheSoundtrackOfWhoIBecame, #HappyBirthdayToMe, #LutherVandross, #AHouseIsNotAHome, #DionneWarwick, #BurtBacharach,#QuietStorm
