Mahsa Vahdat & Mighty Sam McClain: Love duets across Civilizations – A deeper tone of longing

East meets West… again

Under the heading “A deeper tone of longing”, Mahsa Vahdat from Iran and Mighty Sam McClain from the US have made a second album with ”Duets across Civilizations”. 

In 2009 they recorded ”Scent of Reunion”. The album with love duets in Farsi and English got a wonderful worldwide reception both in many Western countries, and in the Iranian exile communities as well as in Iran itself. The record was like hands stretched out towards each other across borders and walls made by people in power.

This time the title ”A deeper tone of longing” indicates that the duo has search another layer in their interpretation of love songs. The same poets; Mohammad Ibrahim Jafari and Erik Hillestad and the same composers; Mahsa Vahdat herself, Sigvart Dagsland and Knut Reiersrud are involved. The same Norwegian/Iranian band, with Knut Reiersrud and Jarle Bernhoft (guitars), Mathias Eick (trumpet, bass and vibes), Rune Arnesen (drums) and Pasha Hanjani (ney), is accompanying the singers, supplied with one new, important element: The kamancheh player Shervin Mohajer. But because these people have worked together for a while, both on the stage and in the studio, the 10 songs with meetings between Persian and American music are shaped in a more mature and organic way than before, and the ethno/blues fusion band sounds in a way less “polite” and careful than on the first album.

Track list: 

1. A deeper tone of longing                                         6:30

2. When you came                                                       5:55

3. Nobody                                                                     4:50

4. Two jewels                                                                4:53

5. Sun of Iran                                                                5:42

6. We are sailors                                                           6:01

7. My heart doesn't know borders                              4:47

8. Refugee of love                                                        5:42

9. Lover's prayer                                                           4:37

10. Coat of dreams and silk                                         5:05