Vandross was famous for his adoration of women singers, such as Dionne Warwick, Aretha Franklin, and Diana Ross, and he produced recordings for them. Vandross’s respect for talent can be discerned in how much space he gives Martha Wash.
One of his most perfect recordings is his performance with singer Martha Wash of the Lieber-Stoller song “I (Who Have Nothing),” a song about lovers with nothing to give each other but love: and Vandross projects humility and passion, and both he and Wash caress and stroke the lyrics and the song is full of intimacies and observations, glories of articulation. (It would have been interesting had he been more explicit about why the power of love is so needed in the world.) Luther Vandross’s singing on the chorus on “For You to Love” is as beautiful as anything-and sound, as much as thought or feeling, was what he was about. In the medley “Power of Love/Love Power,” Vandross produced one of the anthems of his career, a song that affirmed love. Many people have idiosyncrasies, and most have strengths and weaknesses: the key is creating a life-art, work, social situation, love-that accepts those, that uses those attributes as gifts, as resources. I imagine the janitor who cleaned Vandross’s recording studio may think he is responsible.) This intelligent and gifted man, Luther Vandross, attained a remarkable achievement, but one that does have limitations-his songs can seem fantasies, and many of them can seem too much the same, but Luther Vandross is a phenomenon, for which no one is finally responsible but he himself. (I imagine some of the photographers of his album covers may think they are responsible for Vandross’s success. Vandross, a man who looked ordinary in the first photographs taken of him, became more striking as the sensitivity in his face became more naked: as he began to look the way he sounded. Vandross’s arrangements, like his voice, create their own drama and it is not necessarily where or what we expect-the courtesy and the loneliness in his voice means that realization and resignation have an impact they would not have in another singer’s song. (I imagine some of his background singers may think they are responsible for Luther Vandross’s success.) Vandross’s sensibility and voice-a sensibility and voice created out of choices, influences, and ambitions-are so unique that the otherworldly music that accompanies him may be absolutely necessary. (I imagine one of the synthesizer players may think he’s responsible for Luther Vandross’s success.) Vandross’s background singers-some of the industry’s best-are his true human witnesses, his most impressive collaborators.
on piano, and Yogi Horton on drums, and Paulhino Da Costa on drums and chimes, very talented men all, are simply not as prominent as the constructed tempos and tones of the synthesizer, no matter who is programming it.
The instrumentation that supports him includes a bass guitar, piano, drums, chimes, and significant synthesizers, forming tasteful, well-arranged but predominately artificial sounds. Luther Vandross took love as his theme, and he consistently created a world of feeling-of desire, hope, worry, pain, resignation, and joy-in his music. about faith in love, are given a ballad treatment that becomes a more dramatic exchange featuring a chorus and a charged rhythm, and Vandross raises his voice without losing pitch or tone-or any aspect of civility or sorrow.
The first lines of “Wait for Love,” a song co-written by Vandross and Nat Adderley Jr. In “So Amazing,” Vandross sings of being grateful for the love he has found-and his carefully placed phrases, light and thoughtful, invest the song with joyful tenderness. In the first song on the career retrospective recording The Essential Luther Vandross, “Any Love,” written by Vandross with his longtime collaborator and friend Marcus Miller, a song about a man who faces-admits-his loneliness, but maintains the hope for love, Vandross speaks of refusing to cry, but he does not have to cry-the tears are in his voice. Vandross’s sensitivity is a constant-and there is no doubt that it is genuine.
Luther Vandross’s voice is one of strength, but the strength is built of confidence, directness, and great sensitivity, rather than attitude, force, or sexuality: his approach is often intimate and supple in its expression of passion. Original recording produced by Luther Vandross, Marcus Miller,Ĭompilation produced by Leo Sacks and Ray Bardani