Fi-Fi Goes to Heaven

{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2025}}

{{Infobox album

| name = Fi-Fi Goes to Heaven

| type = Album

| artist = Joanne Brackeen and Special Friends

| cover = Fi-Fi Goes to Heaven.jpg

| alt =

| released = 1987

| recorded = October 1986

| venue =

| studio = RPM Studios, NYC

| genre = Jazz

| length = 41:02

| label = Concord Jazz
CJ-316

| producer = Joanne Brackeen

| chronology = Joanne Brackeen

| prev_title = Havin' Fun

| prev_year = 1985

| next_title = Live at Maybeck Recital Hall, Volume 1

| next_year = 1989

}}

Fi-Fi Goes to Heaven is an album by American pianist Joanne Brackeen recorded in 1986 and released on the Concord Jazz label.[https://www.discogs.com/Joanne-Brackeen-And-Special-Friends-Fi-Fi-Goes-To-Heaven/release/5670668 Discogs: album entry] accessed February 14, 2017

Reception

{{Music ratings

| rev1 = AllMusic

| rev1Score = {{rating|4.5|5}}

}}

AllMusic reviewer Scott Yanow stated "this very well-rounded outing finds the adventurous pianist Joanne Brackeen splitting the program between four originals and three veteran tunes (including "Stardust"). In addition to bassist Cecil McBee and drummer Al Foster, the CD is quite special, for it matches Brackeen with trumpeter Terence Blanchard and Branford Marsalis (whom she insisted play mostly on his earlier specialty, alto). The young lions work well with Brackeen and her rhythm mates on this consistently stimulating and occasionally playful set. A perfect introduction to Joanne Brackeen's music".{{allMusic|class=album|id=mw0000193037|first=Scott|last=Yanow|label=Joanne Brackeen – Fi-Fi Goes to Heaven: Review|accessdate=February 14, 2017}} The album was selected as one of the 1001 Best Jazz albums for The Penguin Jazz Guide with the authors stating "Brackeen is a superb group player and in Cecil McBee has found a bass-player who perfectly complements her right-biased approach to the keyboard ... The set is also distinguished by Branford Marsalis' appearance on alto, his first instrument but one that has played next to no part in his career. He's very convincing on it, though initially hard to place".{{cite book|last = Cook|first = Richard|author-link = Richard Cook (journalist)|author2=Brian Morton |authorlink2=Brian Morton (Scottish writer) |title = The Penguin Jazz Guide: The History of the Music in 1001 Best Albums|orig-date = 1992|edition = 10th|series = The Penguin Guide to Jazz|year = 2010|publisher = Penguin|location = New York|isbn = 978-0-14-104831-4}}

Track listing

All compositions by Joanne Brackeen except where noted.

  1. "Estilo Magnifico" – 6:17
  2. "Stardust" (Hoagy Carmichael, Mitchell Parish) – 7:56
  3. "Fi-Fi Goes to Heaven" – 5:28
  4. "Zingaro" (Antônio Carlos Jobim) – 6:52
  5. "I Hear a Rhapsody" (George Fragos, Jack Baker, Dick Gasparre) – 5:58
  6. "Cosmonaut" – 3:03
  7. "Dr. Chang" – 5:28

Personnel

References