What they're already saying...



"Get ready to go to musical dreamland on all levels."

- Jay Graydon - LA guitar legend, Grammy winning songwriter, arranger, producer and studio artist: Steely Dan, George Benson, Al Jarreau, Airplay, Earth Wind and Fire



"Art to be recognised and cherished."

- Bob Bowker - Chicago vocal luminary and studio artist. Composer, conductor, producer



"It's glorious to hear Bonnie's recorded voice again. Andy Bush has created a tapestry that owns a special place in her story. The production just blew me away!"

- Stephen Bulla - Washington DC composer, arranger, conductor: 'The Presidents Own' United States Marine Band & Chamber Orchestra




From the Producer...

1972: Watergate, The Godfather, Apollo 17, Fischer v. Spassky, my 6th Birthday party... I never cease to be amazed and amused by that bizarre potpourri of global events and fledgling, personal experience which seems, always, to define one’s early years. Growing up in a house brimful with music, I guess it was only natural to me that I also viewed those formative times via that particular prism. Records were my point of reference - my dateline, if you will, and my inspiration. Among the esteemed arrivals on our turntable, early in said year - Quincy Jones’ Smackwater Jack (more of this in future despatches) and, most notably, the recent debut releases A Capella and In Tune by The Singers Unlimited. From that very first needle-drop, I was transported, although only later would I come to appreciate, fully, the happy significance of the moment. Who knew that in little more than two years, my dear dad would record with the group, here in London, and that one of their number would, in time, become such an important figure in my world.

Bonnie Herman: a luminous, transcendent vocal talent, whose exquisite tone, flawless pitch, groove and ineffable nuance have bewitched generations of musicians, the world over. A studio vocalist in Chicago since her teens, Bonnie has eschewed fame and the limelight throughout her career, but her unique gifts have assured a status as one of the most recorded and oft broadcast musicians of all time. In addition to being, quite literally, ‘the voice’ of American advertising, her fifteen albums with The Singers Unlimited are universally regarded as a high-water mark in vocal Art Music - the defining touchstone in that realm of recording, a cappella and jazz vocal groups, for more than fifty years. The quality of the singing, the otherworldly arrangements of Gene Puerling, the studio craft and sonics of that body of work, stand alone. Consider, also, Bonnie’s contribution to the output of fellow recording artists, across the decades, and it’s clear that few parts of the music spectrum remain untouched by her quiet genius.

Between 2012 and 2014, Bonnie and I collaborated on a documentary which I wrote and presented in celebration of her music-making and her beloved studio realm, and which Steely Dan’s Michael Leonhart and I produced for public radio in the US and Canada. Aside from honouring Bonnie’s extraordinary art and craft, it revealed a lady as ‘forever young’ in spirit and creative ethos, as she is in voice. A lifelong love of music - selfless and true - conquers all, it would seem. Its regenerative powers, beyond doubt. Who better, then, to join forces with The Forgotten Fairground - an ensemble whose exuberant, free-wheeling adventures in music, dance and cinema are so clearly born of that same joyful, holistic approach to art and life.

Bonnie, what a great artist and a beautiful soul you are. In the words of Nat Cole, you leave us ‘breathless.’ Thank you for your wondrous, iridescent take on Hushabye Mountain - Robert and Richard Sherman’s timeless classic. It’s a song of love and caring that means so much to so many, and I can think of nobody better qualified to communicate its enduring magic. Thank you, also, for voicing Inner Island - The Leeward Side, a lovely, pertinent meditation on all our journeys - past, present and future. It’s an honour for all concerned. A special moment. As a mutual friend once said, “You only get one Bonnie Herman in a lifetime.” It’s a fact... You inspire!

Andy Bush