A woman celebrating
Sarah-Jane Morris does not try to resolve conflicts or apologize for female foibles on her sixth and latest CD, 'Love and Pain.'
Combine the voices and attitudes of Janis Joplin, Joan Armatrading, Grace Jones, Macy Gray and Annie Lennox. Then, you may begin to get a sense of the sound of Sarah-Jane Morris, who released her latest CD, "Love and Pain," on July 8.
Morris is best known for her remake of the Thelma Houston dance classic, "Don't Leave Me This Way," which she made an international hit with the Communards in 1986. Notable especially to the lesbian community is her 1989 remake of Billy Paul's "Me & Mrs. Jones."
"What I've done in 'Love and Pain' is I've celebrated being a woman, and being a woman at the age that I am," Morris, 44, told the Blade during a recent interview in New York City. Her songs, written from a female perspective, confront the sometimes fierce and conflicting emotions all people face on some level. Morris seeks neither to resolve conflicts nor to apologize for female foibles. She says her work simply looks at and sometimes has "a sense of humour with the contradictions."
Morris, who is from Stratford-upon-Avon, England, is not a lesbian. But the performer, who is committed to socialist and equality politics, would not say so, even when her version of "Me & Mrs. Jones" - a personal favourite in which she refused to change the gender of the lyrics – was essentially banned from U.K. radio. It was never released as a single in the U.S. As for defending her rendition of "Me & Mrs. Jones," Morris says, "If I didn't, it was like betraying everything that had been done ... every friend that I had. I couldn't do that." The song was a hit in countries including Germany, France, Greece, and Italy, where a great deal of her popularity remains. Morris also enjoys strong support among lesbian fans. This followed closely after her work with the '80s gay dance icons, the Communards.
"LOVE AND PAIN" is Morris' sixth album, and the first where she's written or helped write each song. "Mad Woman Blues" begins the CD with a traditional blues feel set to a slow hip-hop drum loop. It is a call for women to take control of their lives: "I demand that you girls now listen to me/You must partake of all your chances, remain truly free." In the ballad "Once In Every While," the range of Morris' vocals begins to become evident as she plunges from a straight-ahead, strong mid-range to a low, growling counterpoint. The title song, "Love and Pain" places a heavy, sexual dance beat verse and chorus against a light, angelic bridge. "It's the nearest I've gotten to writing an S&M song," quips Morris, about lyrics that speak of the physical and psychological merging of passion with anguish: "My body aches to breathe your breath/With your words you keep me alive/Nothing between us but nakedness/While you suck my lifeblood through your crazy eyes."
Religious references permeate "It's Jesus I Love," ("but it's the devil I need tonight"), "Blind Old Friends," "Arms of an Angel," and "Innocence," a lullaby for her son, Otis."I am spiritual," Morris says. "I couldn't necessarily name that it is God personified that I believe in, but I am interested in it enough ... to play with it in song." "A Horse Named Janis Joplin," references a time several years ago when Morris was considered for a part in a movie about Joplin. The part was not to be hers, but she combined the experience with memories of her aunt's passion for horse racing and the song emerged.
The album ends with its most moving piece, "Fields of Wheat," which was written for a friend who was on the fast track to being an acting superstar but committed suicide over "a heartbreak that she could not resolve." Its prominent vocals over a bed of synth strings and sparse piano help illustrate the complexity of friendship.
Morris notes that "Love and Pain" is a journey that starts with a tormented relationship and finishes with freedom and a celebration of someone special.
Sarah-Jane Morris does not try to resolve conflicts or apologize for female foibles on her sixth and latest CD, 'Love and Pain.'
Combine the voices and attitudes of Janis Joplin, Joan Armatrading, Grace Jones, Macy Gray and Annie Lennox. Then, you may begin to get a sense of the sound of Sarah-Jane Morris, who released her latest CD, "Love and Pain," on July 8.
Morris is best known for her remake of the Thelma Houston dance classic, "Don't Leave Me This Way," which she made an international hit with the Communards in 1986. Notable especially to the lesbian community is her 1989 remake of Billy Paul's "Me & Mrs. Jones."
"What I've done in 'Love and Pain' is I've celebrated being a woman, and being a woman at the age that I am," Morris, 44, told the Blade during a recent interview in New York City. Her songs, written from a female perspective, confront the sometimes fierce and conflicting emotions all people face on some level. Morris seeks neither to resolve conflicts nor to apologize for female foibles. She says her work simply looks at and sometimes has "a sense of humour with the contradictions."
Morris, who is from Stratford-upon-Avon, England, is not a lesbian. But the performer, who is committed to socialist and equality politics, would not say so, even when her version of "Me & Mrs. Jones" - a personal favourite in which she refused to change the gender of the lyrics – was essentially banned from U.K. radio. It was never released as a single in the U.S. As for defending her rendition of "Me & Mrs. Jones," Morris says, "If I didn't, it was like betraying everything that had been done ... every friend that I had. I couldn't do that." The song was a hit in countries including Germany, France, Greece, and Italy, where a great deal of her popularity remains. Morris also enjoys strong support among lesbian fans. This followed closely after her work with the '80s gay dance icons, the Communards.
"LOVE AND PAIN" is Morris' sixth album, and the first where she's written or helped write each song. "Mad Woman Blues" begins the CD with a traditional blues feel set to a slow hip-hop drum loop. It is a call for women to take control of their lives: "I demand that you girls now listen to me/You must partake of all your chances, remain truly free." In the ballad "Once In Every While," the range of Morris' vocals begins to become evident as she plunges from a straight-ahead, strong mid-range to a low, growling counterpoint. The title song, "Love and Pain" places a heavy, sexual dance beat verse and chorus against a light, angelic bridge. "It's the nearest I've gotten to writing an S&M song," quips Morris, about lyrics that speak of the physical and psychological merging of passion with anguish: "My body aches to breathe your breath/With your words you keep me alive/Nothing between us but nakedness/While you suck my lifeblood through your crazy eyes."
Religious references permeate "It's Jesus I Love," ("but it's the devil I need tonight"), "Blind Old Friends," "Arms of an Angel," and "Innocence," a lullaby for her son, Otis."I am spiritual," Morris says. "I couldn't necessarily name that it is God personified that I believe in, but I am interested in it enough ... to play with it in song." "A Horse Named Janis Joplin," references a time several years ago when Morris was considered for a part in a movie about Joplin. The part was not to be hers, but she combined the experience with memories of her aunt's passion for horse racing and the song emerged.
The album ends with its most moving piece, "Fields of Wheat," which was written for a friend who was on the fast track to being an acting superstar but committed suicide over "a heartbreak that she could not resolve." Its prominent vocals over a bed of synth strings and sparse piano help illustrate the complexity of friendship.
Morris notes that "Love and Pain" is a journey that starts with a tormented relationship and finishes with freedom and a celebration of someone special.