Abandoned Garden

Background

The album is a dedication to the memory of Brazilian jazz musician, singer and composer Antônio Carlos Jobim. Franks had drawn artistic inspiration throughout his career from Jobim, and had collaborated with him in the past.

"Somehow Our Love Survives" marked the return of keyboardist and lyricist Joe Sample, with whom Franks had collaborated with on numerous albums previously, including Sleeping Gypsy in 1977 and Blue Pacific in 1990.

Musicians

Michael Franks – vocals, guitar, banjo

Brian Mitchell – vocals

Jeff Mironov – guitar, acoustic guitar

Chuck Loeb – guitar

John Leventhal – electric guitar

Diane Barere, Mark Orrin Shuman, Frederick Slotkin – cello

Bob Mintzer – flute, alto flute

Lawrence Feldman – alto flute

Manolo Badrena – woodwinds, percussion

Joshua Redman – soprano saxophone

David Sanborn, Andy Snitzer – alto saxophone

Michael Brecker – tenor saxophone

Randy Brecker – flugelhorn

Keith O'Quinn – trombone

Eliane Elias, Russell Ferrante, Gil GoldsteinBob James, Carla Bley – piano

Peter Erskine – drums, percussion

Chris Parker, Lewis Nash – drums

Don Alias, Bashiri Johnson – percussion

Support

Jimmy Haslip, Michael Colina, Russell Ferrante – arrangement

James Farber – audio mixer

Ken Schles, Fredrick Nilsen – photography

Recording at Bearsville Studios, Clinton, Make Believe Ballroom, Power Station, Sound on Sound

Reception

Reaction to Abandoned Garden was mixed.

Writing for AllMusic, Ross Boissoneau praised the input of "heavy hitters", but lamented it was "neither Franks' best effort nor particularly evocative of the great Brazilian composer" the album was dedicated to. He concluded "while the revolving door of stars has served Franks well on other recordings, here they don't seem to add up to much."

The jazz/blues Down Beat magazine rated the album "good" in their March 1996 issue, reporting it to be "a genuine keeper, a guilty pleasure. Somehow Franks, a song stylist more than a jazz vocalist, once again gets his way, singing his indelible melodies that before you know it are under your skin, into your veins and etched into your soul..."