In 2000,
Dennis Russell Davies of the
American Composers Orchestra invited
Laurie Anderson to contribute an original composition to a program of new music based on the theme of flight.
Anderson responded with "Songs for A.E.," a piece for 20 musicians inspired by the life of pioneering female aviator
Amelia Earhart.
Anderson has said she wasn't happy with the finished product, but
Davies felt there were enough worthwhile moments in it to persuade her to keep working on it. In time,
Anderson returned to "Songs for A.E.," which she transformed from a contemplation of
Earhart's life and reputation into an impressionistic imagining of her final flight, when her plane vanished in July 1937 during an attempt to fly around the world.
Anderson's revised edition of "Songs for A.E." provides the basis for her 2024 album
Amelia, and the LP suggests she and
Davies were both right -- there are plenty of powerful moments here, but it doesn't cohere into a whole that lives up to
Anderson's usual standards, or the potential of this story. The album moves back and forth from a loose narrative as
Earhart hops from nation to nation to circumnavigate the Earth, and occasionally stepping away as both
Earhart and
Anderson contemplate her status as a feminist hero, what drew her to her career as a pilot, and how she was seen as a novelty as much as a groundbreaking aviator, "Lady Lindy" instead of an accomplished flyer in her own right. For this recording,
Davies joins
Anderson as he leads the Czech ensemble
Filharmonie Brno, while
Anohni adds atmospheric backing vocals on several tracks. The piece often feels fragmented -- no great surprise, as the 22 selections whiz by in 35 minutes -- and
Anderson's first-person readings as
Earhart are striking and eloquent, making us feel the tremendous physical and mental toll the epic journey took on
Earhart and her navigator.
Amelia might have worked better if
Anderson had kept the focus on
Earhart's internal dialogue as she struggled to live up to the goal she set for herself and why she chose such a brave and challenging feat, but as it is, it's a collection of interesting ideas and striking moments where the whole doesn't quite equal the sum of the parts. ~ Mark Deming
![Greatest Hits [MCA]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0008811088422_p0_v1_s90x140.jpg "Greatest Hits [MCA]")
