'Phenomenal Women' by Macha Gharibian

I say,

It’s in the reach of my arms,

The span of my hips,   

The stride of my step,   

The curl of my lips.   

I’m a woman

Phenomenally.

Phenomenal woman,   

That’s me.

Legacy is an infinitely powerful thing.  Sometimes a person's actions can be like a pebble tossed into a still lake where we have no real understanding of how far the ripples can spread.

Revered writer, poet and civil rights activist Maya Angelou has an incredible body of work to her name but it's the sentiments expressed in her 1978 poem entitled 'Phenomenal Woman' which ultimately brings us to the release of the fourth album by the multi-talented, Macha Gharibian.

As a singer, songwriter and pianist, Gharibian's music has always held a distinctive world view thanks in large part to her Armenian heritage, Parisian upbringing and affections for New York jazz.  With past releases including 'Mars' (2013), 'Trans Extended' (2016) and 'Joy Ascension' (2020), Gharibian seeks to use each project to immerse herself within different narratives affording her the freedom to veer off into a variety of creative and imaginative directions.

Through 'Phenomenal Women' - which Angelou's words serving as chief inspiration - Gharibian seeks to celebrate what it means to be a woman in the 21st century with a sensational release that inspires as much as heralds the paths her predecessors have walked before her.

Backed by an excellent line-up of musicians and contributors throughout, the band's core unit is comprised of bassist Sylvain Ruby and long-time collaborator in drummer Dré Pallemaerts whose contributions to Gharibian releases date as far back to 2016's 'Trans Extended'.  The invitation to collaborate is further extended to vocalists Lea Maria Fries, Linda Oláh and Isabel Sörling which resonates as an affectional and poignant technique when considering the context of 'Phenomenal Women' in its own right - it contributes to the idea of this album's story being bigger than one woman's so allowing a range of female voices to join in with their own form of celebration and expression proves an immeasurably classy move.

The music throughout is everything listeners would have come to expect from Macha Gharibian's releases to date - beautifully performed and elegantly composed with personality and charm exuded within each of the album's thirteen tracks.  Which brings us back to the concept of legacy... in the same way that a person can regard a piece of art and find inspiration from it 46 years after its initial unveiling, it would be fair to say that Macha Gharibian's 'Phenomenal Women' has now started its own ripples and will stand as a treasure in its own right for people to discover.