DIANA KRALL - Wallflower (2015) Deluxe Edition / FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Diana Krall paid tribute to her father on Glad Rag Doll, the 2012 album sourced from his collection of 78-rpm records, and, in a sense, its 2015 successor Wallflower is a companion record of sorts, finding the singer revisiting songs from her childhood. Like many kids of the 20th century, she grew up listening to the radio, which meant she was weaned on the soft rock superhits of the '70s -- songs that earned sniffy condescension at the time but nevertheless have turned into modern standards due to their continual presence in pop culture (and arguably were treated that way at the time, seeing cover after cover by middlebrow pop singers). Krall does not limit herself to the songbook of Gilbert O'Sullivan, Jim Croce, the Carpenters, Elton John, and the Eagles, choosing to expand her definition of soft rock to include a previously unrecorded Paul McCartney song called "If I Take You Home Tonight" (a leftover from his standards album Kisses on the Bottom), Bob Dylan's "Wallflower," Randy Newman's "Feels Like Home," and Neil Finn's "Don't Dream It's Over," a song from 1986 that has been covered frequently in the three decades since. "Don't Dream It's Over" slides into this collection easily, as it's as malleable and timeless as "California Dreamin'," "Superstar," "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word," or "Operator (That's Not the Way It Feels)," songs that are identified with specific artists but are often covered successfully. Krall's renditions rank among those successes because she's understated, never fussing with the melodies but allowing her arrangements to slink by in a deliberate blend of sparseness and sophistication. It's an aesthetic that helps transform the Eagles' "I Can't Tell You Why" and 10cc's "I'm Not in Love," singles that are as successful as much for their production as their song, into elegant torch songs, yet it doesn't do much for Newman's pedestrian "Feels Like Home," nor does it lend itself to the loping country of "Wallflower," which may provide the name for this album but feels like an uninvited guest among these majestically melodic middle-of-the-road standards. These stumbles are slight and, tellingly, they put into context Krall's achievement with Wallflower: by singing these songs as sweet and straight as the dusty old standards on Glad Rag Doll or the bossa nova on 2009's Quiet Nights, she demonstrates how enduring these once-dismissed soft rock tunes really are. by Stephen Thomas Erlewine  
Tracklist :
1    California Dreamin' 3:17
Acoustic Bass – Christian McBride
Acoustic Guitar – Ramon Stagnaro
Arranged By – David Foster, William Ross
Backing Vocals – Graham Nash, Stephen Stills
Electric Guitar – Michael Thompson
Keyboards – David Foster
Synthesizer – Jochem van der Saag
Written-By – John Phillips, Michelle Phillips
2    Desperado 3:32
Arranged By – David Foster, William Ross
Drums – Karriem Riggins
Piano – David Foster
Synthesizer – Jochem van der Saag
Vocals – Diana Krall
Written-By – Don Henley, Glenn Frey
3    Supestar 4:17
Acoustic Bass – Christian McBride
Arranged By – David Foster, William Ross
Drums – Karriem Riggins
Piano – David Foster
Synthesizer – Jochem van der Saag
Vocals – Diana Krall
Written-By – Bonnie Bramlett, Leon Russell
4    Alone Again (Naturally) 3:50
Arranged By – Chris Walden, David Foster
Bass – Dennis Crouch
Featuring – Michael Bublé
Guitar – Dean Parks
Piano – David Foster
Programmed By – Jochem van der Saag
Vocals – Diana Krall
Written-By – Gilbert O'Sullivan
5    Wallflower 3:05
Arranged By – Chris Walden, David Foster
Featuring – Blake Mills
Guitar – Blake Mills
Piano – Diana Krall
Vocals – Diana Krall
Written-By – Bob Dylan
6    If I Take You Home Tonight 3:53
Arranged By – David Foster, William Ross
Bass – Nathan East
Drums – Jim Keltner
Guitar – Dean Parks
Piano – David Foster
Programmed By – Jochem van der Saag
Vocals – Diana Krall
Written-By – Paul McCartney
7    I Can't Tell You Why 3:40
Acoustic Bass – Christian McBride
Acoustic Guitar – Ramon Stagnaro
Arranged By – David Foster, William Ross
Backing Vocals – Timothy B. Schmit
Drums – Karriem Riggins
Vocals – Diana Krall
Written-By – Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Timothy B. Schmit
8    Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word 4:11
Arranged By – David Foster, William Ross
Piano – David Foster
Programmed By – Jochem van der Saag
Vocals – Diana Krall
Written-By – Elton John & Bernie Taupin
9    Operator (That's Not The Way It Feels) 3:41
Acoustic Bass – Dennis Crouch
Acoustic Guitar – Michael Thompson, Ramon Stagnaro
Arranged By – David Foster
Backing Vocals – Graham Nash, Stephen Stills
Drums – Karriem Riggins
Electric Guitar – Stephen Stills
Piano – David Foster
Vocals – Diana Krall
Written-By – Jim Croce
10    I'm Not In Love 3:52
Acoustic Bass – Christian McBride
Arranged By – David Foster, William Ross
Drums – Jim Keltner
Electric Guitar – Michael Thompson
Piano – David Foster
Synthesizer – Jochem van der Saag
Vocals – Diana Krall
Written-By – Eric Stewart, Graham Gouldman
11    Feels Like Home 4:21
Acoustic Bass – Christian McBride
Acoustic Guitar – Michael Thompson
Arranged By – David Foster, William Ross
Drums – Jim Keltner
Featuring – Bryan Adams, Bryan Adams
Piano – David Foster
Synthesizer – Jochem van der Saag
Vocals – Diana Krall
Written-By – Randy Newman
12    Don't Dream It's Over 3:37
Arranged By – Vince Mendoza
Drums – Jim Keltner
Guitar – Michael Thompson
Keyboards – David Foster
Synthesizer – Jochem van der Saag
Vocals – Diana Krall
Written-By – Neil Finn
- Bonus Tracks -    
13    In My Life 3:53
14    Yeh Yeh 3:00
Featuring – Georgie Fame
15    Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest World (Live) 3:44
16    Wallflower (Live) 3:10