Liza’s Confessions Are a Little Too Sweet

“Confessions,” the second album released by Liza Minnelli since her decade-long bout with health issues, is the product of two jazz veterans: the legendary actress and jazz singer, and Grammy-winning composer and pianist Billy Stritch. Unfortunately, Minelli’s selection of repertoire—though all undoubtedly classic standards—are somewhat unflattering to the collaborators’ skills; the collection of fourteen songs, all describing love, are frustratingly monotonous in succession.

After sixty years in the entertainment industry, Minnelli still delivers her sultry contralto with spirit and skill, although—understandably so—it lacks the energy found in her Academy Award-winning performance in the 1972 film “Cabaret.” Nonetheless, in “This Heart of Mine,” her rich voice dances lithely around vocal melodies with precision when she sings, “Somehow this crazy man / Has taken all the wonderful design / As long as life endures, it’s yours / This heart of mine.” Although the vocal titan overuses vibrato—in “I Hadn’t Anyone Till You” she employs vibrato for almost every suspended note in the song—she proves her artistry through her ability to project emotions in her tones. In “Confessions,” she plays the master of the cabaret, and manipulates melodies with strategically-placed rubatos, accents and lilts to bring life to otherwise dull lyrics. She sways expertly from sweet and adoring to seductive and adventurous in “Close Your Eyes:” “Some dreaming for dancing / While we’re here romancing / It’s love’s holiday / And love will be our god / Close your eyes.“

Stritch’s skill on the piano is comparable to Minnelli’s vocal skill as he performs with an intriguing range of emotional expression. His piano solo in “Close Your Eyes” captures the suave essence of jazz; however, some instrumental variety would have given more depth to the songs. The album’s percussion seems to have been disregarded during production, as very little variation from a standard snare is employed. It would have added much-needed relief from the prevailing acoustic piano-vocal dynamic. As they are, it is difficult to distinguish between the songs. Tracks such as “You Fascinate Me So” conjure images of riding in an elevator of a tacky hotel due to commonplace and flat instrumentation.

While the vocal and instrumental skills are definite strengths of Minnelli’s album, the track list leaves something to be desired. Minnelli has uncovered some timeless classics, each written by talented songwriters, but she croons about love for the entire forty-five minutes—perhaps the 64 year-old legend has encountered another infatuation? “Confessions” invokes nausea likely due to a need to expel the overdose of melodramatic love-sickness, a sensation similar to one after gorging on a gallon of sickly-sweet ice cream. A selection or two that deals less extensively about love would have balanced out the album, and may have shifted the focus to Minelli’s and Stritch’s skills from the over-explored theme.

Despite Minnelli’s and Stritch’s mastery in voice and piano, “Confessions” suffers from its lovesick melancholy. With an exception for avid fans of 1950’s romance films, this album is best prescribed in moderation.