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MP3 Hillary Smith - No Easy Way
12 MP3 Songs
BLUES: Funky Blues, BLUES: Blues Vocals
Details:
With a deep soulfulness rooted in the Gospel-driven churches of her youth, a classically trained vocal instrument that’s a natural wonder, and a God-given instinct for swinging a lyric, vocalist Hillary Smith has been electrifying audiences across the United States for more than a quarter century.
“I’m just a southern girl,” Hill says, and you could be excused for thinking she means “southern” as in Memphis or Muscle Shoals or New Orleans. Smith’s early training, however, came not in the churches of the Southeast, but in those of the Southwest, specifically Hobbs, New Mexico.
Her voice carried her first to the University of New Mexico for classical training. “I had my go at trying to go the very classical route. I just discovered I have too many bad habits,” she says, with a burst of laughter.
Hill first made her mark in the early ’80s with gutsy performances of rockin’ blues and funk. She’s been in demand on the Southwest music scene ever since, fronting a number of popular bands, including the award-winning Strictly Taboo. In recent years, at the urging of musician friends, Hill has opened a satisfying new chapter in her career, bringing her ineffable phrasing and soulfulness to the jazz songbook.
Named Best Musician in Albuquerque The Magazine’s Best of City, Hill continues to perform a variety of genres in several different musical aggregations. “I love the power behind a Rufus tune. A thick groove always gets to me, and I love the complexities, the subtleties in jazz. The approach is completely different. I’m very grateful to the versatile, passionate musicians that allow me to attempt both. They teach me each and every time we play together,” she says.
Her most recent release, No Easy Way (2008)—“probably the truest representation of what I do”—features big band funk, nasty blues, neosoul, and gospel-flavored tracks, and includes the legendary “funky drummer” Clyde Stubblefield, trumpeter Bobby Shew, and her coproducers pianist John Rangel and bassist Luís Guerra.
Hill is also featured on pianist, vocalist, composer Kevin Hayes’ 2007 recording The Dreamer, and she appeared with Kevin at the 2007 Gathering of the Vibes, along with Joshua Redman, Nicholas Payton, Peter Bernstein, and Bill Stewart.
Whatever the genre or venue, Hillary Smith always delivers soulful performances that fill listeners’ hearts with her warmth, love, and sheer musical excitement
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