Mary Black abandons her usual sound and production on Shine, an album of songs recorded in Los Angeles with local session musicians.
At the production helm is studio veteran Larry Klein (who has worked with Peter Gabriel and Joni Mitchell), and he aided in selecting songs from a new crop of songwriters.
Most notably, Mary Black sings five songs by David Gray, a gifted songwriter who would later break into the mainstream with 1999's White Ladder.
The first half of Shine is a strong collection of songs that rank among her best work, with the uplifting title track and "Almost Gone" as the highlights.
The second half is a bit uneven as slow ballads are sandwiched between harder-edged tracks.
Despite the fuller sound and the presence of electric guitar, most of the songs work and it is refreshing to hear Mary Black try something new.
However, she often stretches her voice and, therefore, loses some of the subtleties that are her trademark.
The hidden track "Dancers in the Dark" shows that she has not abandoned spare acoustic arrangements, and it appears that this was a one-album experiment.
Fans will definitely want to get this album, but casual listeners should start elsewhere.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ShineDavid Gray | Mary Black | Play | 04:40 | 10 MB | 28 MB |
| 2 | One and OnlyScott Cutler, Anne Preven | Mary Black | Play | 04:03 | 9 MB | 28 MB |
| 3 | Almost GoneDavid Gray | Mary Black | Play | 03:38 | 8 MB | 22 MB |
| 4 | Nobody Lives Without LoveTonio K., Larry Klein | Mary Black | Play | 05:06 | 11 MB | 32 MB |
| 5 | I MisunderstoodRichard Thompson | Mary Black | Play | 03:52 | 8 MB | 23 MB |
| 6 | Trespass ShoesDavid Gray | Mary Black | Play | 05:22 | 12 MB | 30 MB |
| 7 | I Will Be TherePaul Brady, John O'Kane | Mary Black | Play | 04:24 | 10 MB | 26 MB |
| 8 | What Does It MatterDavid Gray | Mary Black | Play | 04:20 | 9 MB | 28 MB |
| 9 | BeautifulAmy Kanter | Mary Black | Play | 04:16 | 9 MB | 27 MB |
| 10 | Late Night RadioDavid Gray | Mary Black | Play | 03:06 | 7 MB | 22 MB |
| 11 | By The Hour | Mary Black | Play | 08:17 | 18 MB | 47 MB |
| 51 mins | 117 MB | |||||
| 51 mins | 318 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | David Batteau | Composer |
| 2 | Mary Black | Primary Artist, Vocals (Background) |
| 3 | Paul Brady | Composer, Guest Artist, Vocals |
| 4 | Gwendolen Cates | Photography |
| 5 | Jim Cox | Organ |
| 6 | Pat Crowley | Accordion, Organ, Piano |
| 7 | Scott Cutler | Composer |
| 8 | Peter Doell | Assistant Engineer |
| 9 | Frank Gallagher | Fiddle, Keyboards, Whistle (Human) |
| 10 | Garvan Gallagher | Bass |
| 11 | David Gray | Composer |
| 12 | Amy Kanter | Composer, Vocals (Background) |
| 13 | Larry Klein | Bass, Composer, Drums, Guitar, Keyboards, Percussion, Producer |
| 14 | Michael Landau | Guitar (Electric) |
| 15 | Greg Leisz | Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Lap Steel Guitar, Pedal Steel |
| 16 | Jerry Marotta | Drums, Percussion |
| 17 | Carrie McConkey | Production Coordination |
| 18 | John O'Kane | Composer |
| 19 | Tony Phillips | Engineer, Mixing |
| 20 | Anne Preven | Composer |
| 21 | Billy Robinson | Engineer |
| 22 | Bill Shanley | Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Mandolin |
| 23 | Don Smith | Engineer |
| 24 | Dann Thompson | Assistant Engineer |
| 25 | Richard Thompson | Composer |
| 26 | Tonio K. | Composer |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |