SIMPLY BLISS

It's been a helluva stressful few days and I hope I'm coming through it - only just.

I have been thrilled and am completely discovering a voice that is so recognisable but I've never checked out the discography until last week to see what I could uncover except the usual standard tracks - the back catalogue of Barbra Joan Streisand.

Now I know it's cliched but there's something just so pure and smooth about this diva's voice. It's as though every note is effortless and she takes you to the most magical perfect place when you listen - it's so easy. The only other vocalist who can do this to me is Karen Carpenter

So I trawled Barbra's back catalogue and picked a few albums that seemed to steam my pudding.

- Especially interesting was her first album, simply entitled "The Barbra Streisand Album" This album has some great standards and starts with the timeless "Cry Me A River" which has now been played to death on my iPod. She is so silky it's just blissful to listen to. Her track "A Sleepin' Bee" is just so fabulous, I could listen to it all day. I could go through every track on this album and rave about everyone but other highlights are "Happy Days Are Here Again" and "My Honey's Lovin Arms"

- The next album Barbra recorded was also ingeniously titled "The Second Barbra Streisand Album" She treats this in a similar vein to her first album with some great torching of songs. I have never been so sure of a vocalist hitting every note perfectly and hearing her "Down With Love" and "My Coloring Book" prove this. Barbra gets all dramatic with the final track "Like A Straw In The Wind".

- Finally I took Barbra on another direction on Stoney End. I had heard Diana Ross and the Supremes sing a few of these tracks such as Time and Love and the title track Stoney End. Barbra gives a completely different rendition aswell as "If You Could Read My Mind" which is a bit of a disco classic now. It sounds like Barbra wanted to move directly from jazz and hit the pop charts with a bang. She succeeds as her voice has matured in the years from her first album and is suited by her great song choice in this album. I love it!! In fact it's just simply bliss.