David Sylvian - I Surrender (Single, Parts I & II) (1999)

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David Sylvian - I Surrender (Single, Parts I & II) (1999)

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The leadoff single for David Sylvian's 1999 album (and his first solo release in a decade) "Dead Bees on a Cake", "I Surrender" was released in two parts, each augmented by two b-sides featuring vocals by Sylvian's then wife Ingrid Chavez. The four tracks were originally recorded in the mid 1990s for an album to be released under Chavez's name titled "Little Girls With 99 Lives". This material is a bit of an oddity, having been leaked to the Sylvian fan community long prior to release, there was concern that Sylvian had abanondoned singing as his vocal is barely present, but the project was evidentally intended to be a Chavez release, as such it makes sense that it would feature her vocals.
Part 1 contains the full album mix of "I Surrender". A lengthy (over nine minutes) jazz infused love song, it is a lovely piece, Sylvian's vocal clearly full of passion and energy, and delicately supported by a lush backdrop and solos by flautist Lawrence Feldman, flugelhornist Kenny Wheeler (who plays an extended solo that threatens to match Sylvian's voice for passion), its a bit overlong, but somehow with the loping beat, this works nicely.
The b-sides are certainly intriguting - "Les Fleurs du Mal" features an ambient background that eventually incorporates a tribal rhythm that feels very much like a post "Gone To Earth"/Sylvian/Fripp variant of "Words with the Shaman", but for Chavez's spoken vocal on top of it. "Starred and Dreaming" is an oddity– Chavez half sings, half speaks over a guitar-only background, sitting somewhere between ambient and blues. Both pieces are actually quite good, but what I'd note is that it wasn't until recently that I could actually listen to and enjoy them. The material is more valuable for its uniqueness than anything else– Sylvian rarely constructs backing tracks for others, and all told the material is quite good. Fans of Sylvian will definitely want to check this one out.
Part 2 contains a single edit of "I Surrender", cutting out the majority of Kenny Wheeler's lovely solo. The edit is really unessential and while the original feels overlong, hacking four minutes off of it creates a much less enjoyable listening experience.
The two b-sides on this part hav a bit more of a pop edge to them than the ones on part 1. "Whose Trip is This?" is full of samples, a hip hop beat, and turntable scracthes, over which Chavez sings. Quite frankly, the whole thing is a bit lifeless, Sylvian seems quite out of place in this context and his accompaniment (in particular his guitar solo) doesn't really sit comfortably. It's also a bit overlong (over seven minutes) and feels it. "Remembering Julia" is somewhat better, with a nice metallic percussion, ambient haze, and spoken vocal, but, eventually picking up to a strong beat, is moody and evocative. But overall, it's really the only particularly exciting track on this single. Part 1 is much better, and completionists will no doubt want both, but this one is of minimal value.