First Instrument
| First Instrument | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 1995 reissue cover | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1990 | |||
| Recorded | December 16, 1989 - February 1990 | |||
| Studio |
| |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 56:34 | |||
| Label | Somethin' Else/Blue Note Records | |||
| Producer |
| |||
| Rachelle Ferrell chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Reissue cover | ||||
 Original 1990 cover | ||||
First Instrument is the 1990 debut album by American vocalist Rachelle Ferrell, first released in Japan on Somethin' Else Records. The album was later released in 1995 in the United States and Europe via Blue Note Records.[1][2] First Instrument peaked at No. 3 on the US Billboard Top Jazz Albums chart.[3]
Background
[edit]First Instrument was produced by Hitoshi Namekata and Lenny White. Artists such as Wayne Shorter, Gil Goldstein, Terence Blanchard, Stanley Clarke, and Pete Levin appear on the album.[1]
Critical reception
[edit]| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [4] |
| USA Today | [5] |
| Charlotte Observer | [6] |
James T. Jones IV of USA Today wrote, "This quiet acoustic setting gives this brilliant singer more musical room to expand her impressive vocal chops. Backed by an unintrusive piano trio, she lets fly her vast vocal arsenal, scatting and manipulating a melody as if it were Silly Putty. Her freewheeling improvisations recall early Al Jarreau."[5]
Scott Yanow of AllMusic remarked, "Her voice is quite soulful, making her later shift to R&B less of a surprise in hindsight, but Ferrell seems quite unsure of how to use her wide range, and her improvisations are often quite eccentric. Her lack of warmth and subtlety (along with a tendency to scream and screech in unexpected spots without a buildup) makes it difficult to listen to several of the numbers on this standards-oriented set."[4]
Langston Wertz of the Charlotte Observer proclaimed, "This is an album that was previously available only in Japan and was recorded in 1989 and '90. That this jazz record of "old music" could constitute one of the best things in any genre to be released in the past 18 months says that Ferrell, if nothing else, has staying power. She doesn't make music for the moment."[6]
Track listing
[edit]| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "You Send Me" | 5:03 |
| 2. | "You Don't Know What Love Is" | 5:13 |
| 3. | "Bye Bye Blackbird" | 4:24 |
| 4. | "Prayer Dance" | 5:58 |
| 5. | "Inchworm" | 2:19 |
| 6. | "With Every Breath I Take" | 6:23 |
| 7. | "What Is This Thing Called Love" | 1:31 |
| 8. | "My Funny Valentine" | 7:13 |
| 9. | "Don't Waste Your Time" | 5:13 |
| 10. | "Extensions" | 4:58 |
| 11. | "Autumn Leaves" | 8:16 |
References
[edit]- ^ a b Rachelle Ferrell: First Instrument (Japanese Issue). Somethin' Else Records. 1990.
- ^ Rachelle Ferrell; First Instrument (US & Europe Issue). Blue Note Records. 1995.
- ^ "Top Jazz Albums". Billboard. June 10, 1995. Retrieved April 6, 2025.
- ^ a b Yanow, Scott. "Rachelle Ferrell – First Instrument: Review". AllMusic. Archived from the original on March 28, 2023. Retrieved April 5, 2025.
- ^ a b Jones IV, James T. (April 17, 1995). "R&B singers swing to jazz - Genres can be vastly different". USA Today. Retrieved April 5, 2025 – via newsbank.com.
- ^ a b Wertz, Langston (April 17, 1995). "NEW ON CASSETTE/CD". Charlotte Observer. Retrieved April 5, 2025 – via newsbank.com.