I'm not keen on big schnozz Babs. My Dad was a fan and I recall endless, drizzle-drenched Sunday afternoons in my early teens, with la Streisand warbling interminably in the background. I also endured far too many of her schmaltzy movies, though rather enjoyed the unintentionally hilarious Yentl, surely the ultimate 'vanity' project!
Despite this, my 'crate digger' instincts meant I still took every opportunity to snaffle Streisand albums at boot fairs, charidee shops et al (paying no more than 50p!) in the eternal hope that I'd chance upon that undiscovered soul / funk classic. And time after time I was (predictably) disappointed UNTIL (cue fanfare!) I came upon a copy of her 'ButterFly' album. Released in 1974, its Babs' very own Pin Ups (David Bowie), an eclectic collection of surprisingly contemporary covers, including songs penned by such titans of cool as (appropriately!) Bowie and Bob Marley. The entire venture being a misguided ploy - doubtless record company conceived - to try and woo the 'hip' demographic.
Most of the tracks are, as Bowie rightly said of Barbra's reading of 'Life On Mars', "Bloody awful". Thankfully, there is a lone exception! Babs' interpretation of Bill Withers 'Grandma's Hands' is an unexpected tour de force and bloody brilliant. Oh and a regular 'early set' Da Doo spin.
Sax player Tom Scott, fresh from playing on Joni Mitchell's transistional album Spark And Court with his jazz-fusion combo L.A. Express is credited as musical co-ordinator. However, 'Grandma's Hands' is a far cry from the nimble jazz-lite stylings of Court And Spark , instead Scott mines the countryfied, blue-eyed swamp funk of Bobbie Gentry and Dusty Springfield's Dusty In Memphis (especially 'Son Of A Preacher Man'). The resulting soundscape posseses a slightly sinister American gothic voodoo vibe, raising the spectre of Tennessee Williams, William Faulkner and the deep South noir of movies like Cape Fear and Night Of The Hunter. This air of foreboding is heightened by Babs' lead vocal, especially her eerie glass-shattering falsetto on "I'm talking 'bout my Grandma's hands", the spectral backing vox and the lines, "Matty don't you whip that girl, What you want to spank her for?, She didn't drop no apple core".
Streisand's version is even more weird and wonderful when compared to Bill Withers original. Whereas Babs hints at something spine-tinglingly spooky, Withers' original (as sampled on Blackstreet's superb 'No Diggity') is a direct, heartfelt paen to his own Grandma. Its undeniably ace but the fact that Barbra who, (let's face it) is fundamentally a bland prima donna is able - in conjunction with Tom Scott's compelling soundtrack - to radically remodel the source material with such startling results is truly remarkable. So which version do I favour? Well, with a gun at my temple I'd opt for Babs as definitive. Just!
Other female versions of 'Grandma's Hands' include Gladys Knight and Ann Nesby. There are numerous male recordings including Gil Scott-Heron (predictably fantastic), Tony Orlando & Dawn, The Staple Singers, Al Jarreau, Livingston Taylor, Will Downing, Jeff Lorber, Marti Pellow (eek!), Take 6 and Ron Kenoly.
FIND IT!
Original Album
Barbra Streisand - ButterFly (Columbia)
Incredibly, I recently stumbled across another pretty groovy Barbra tune, the wonderfully titled 'Our Corner Of The Night'. A non-hit single from 1967, its a slightly cheesy slice of blue-eyed northern soul that would have sounded fab at the Wigan Casino. I've yet to snag a vinyl 45 of this so if anyone owns a reasonably priced copy, please feel free to mail me.
