Laura Nyro - Gonna Take a Miracle

This might seem like an odd one for a rocker like me, but I’ve always been a sucker for girl-groups and Nyro was a songwriter for many hits in the 60’s before she decided to make her own records. Here, on her fifth release, she doffs the songwriter hat and creates an album entirely of covers, with nods to doo-wop, Motown and girl groups. This is a sound from my youth – one of my sisters must have had this record - and I did not realize until I got this CD that LaBelle is the vocal group working with Laura, which makes this that much more enticing.

While most of these are familiar tunes, Nyro re-works them with Patti & her group and revitalizes them in an individual style. You’ll know most of the songs from the original takes – “I Met Him on Sunday”, “Monkey Time/Dancin’ In the Street”, “You’ve Really Got a Hold on Me”, the title track and plenty more. The ladies’ four voices blend and weave together and are truly a thing a beauty. Yes, this is kinda singer/songwriter territory, but really well done and with terrific sounds. The CD includes several live cuts, taken from the Fillmore.

Ironic that my favorite record of Nyro’s is this album of covers considering that she has written hits for many other artists throughout the 60’s and early 70’s. She is responsible for Top 40 tunes for Peter, Paul & Mary, Blood Sweat & Tears, 3 Dog Night, the 5^th Dimension and more. A very talented woman who was taken at a too-young age (49) by ovarian cancer.