Annie Lennox: Nostalgia Live in Concert, featuring Great American Songbook classics from her Grammy-nominated album Nostalgia, will air on THIRTEEN’s Great Performances in April 3, at 10 p.m. on PBS, and be available online and via PBS apps.
Throughout her four-decade career, music superstar Annie Lennox has defied categorization, diving into blues, soul, folk and pop to create songs that captivate and transcend boundaries. In her latest album Nostalgia, Lennox has revealed yet another dimension to her formidable talent. Although jazz is not the genre for which she is best known, she could no longer resist the magnetic pull of some of the most memorable melodies and lyrics from the American Songbook.
Nostalgia, the singer’s seventh solo album, has been nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album. And with the Great Performances special, Annie Lennox: Nostalgia Live in Concert, the singer’s unique interpretations bring a new intimacy to these timeless classics. On the 60-minute concert – which will be taped in January — Lennox will perform songs from the Nostalgia album like “Summertime,” “Strange Fruit,” “I Cover the Waterfront” and “God Bless the Child.”
The special will feature Lennox’s fresh takes on iconic American compositions by such artists as Hoagy Carmichael, Duke Ellington, George Gershwin, Billie Holiday and Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, as she pays tribute to some of the greatest artists of the 20th century, interpreting compositions that have moved her, stripping them down to their emotional and musical core and making them her own, demonstrating how these songs continue to resonate even amid the complexities of modern life.
On the album, Lennox approached each song as if she had never heard it before, boiling each down to its bare essence. Working together with co-producer Mike Stevens, Lennox started with keyboards and added instrumentation sparingly such as the lacerating guitar solo in the middle of “Screaming” Jay Hawkins’ torrid “I Put A Spell on You.” The orchestrations are used on the special.
Song List
Memphis in June
Georgia on My Mind
I Put a Spell on You
Summertime
I Cover the Waterfront
Strange Fruit
God Bless the Child
September in the Rain
The Nearness of You
Mood Indigo
Encores:
Here Comes the Rain Again
Why
Annie Lennox: Nostalgia Live in Concert was directed by Natalie Johns. For Great Performances, Bill O’Donnell is series producer and David Horn is executive producer. Great Performances is funded by the Irene Diamond Fund, the Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Arts Fund, The Agnes Varis Trust, The LuEsther T. Mertz Charitable Trust, The Starr Foundation, The Kate W. Cassidy Foundation, the Philip and Janice Levin Foundation and PBS.
About WNET
As New York’s flagship public media provider and the parent company of THIRTEEN and WLIW21 and operator of NJTV, WNET brings quality arts, education and public affairs programming to over 5 million viewers each week. WNET produces and presents such acclaimed PBS series as Nature, Great Performances, American Masters, PBS NewsHour Weekend, Charlie Rose and a range of documentaries, children’s programs, and local news and cultural offerings available on air and online. Pioneers in educational programming, WNET has created such groundbreaking series as Get the Math, Oh Noah! and Cyberchase and provides tools for educators that bring compelling content to life in the classroom and at home. WNET highlights the tri-state’s unique culture and diverse communities through NYC-ARTS, Reel 13, NJTV News with Mary Alice Williams and MetroFocus, the multi-platform news magazine focusing on the New York region. WNET is also a leader in connecting with viewers on emerging platforms, including the THIRTEEN Explore App where users can stream PBS content for free.
