So even if it wasn't for the importance of the context, this collection of austere, haunting ballads and exuberant dance music would be a compelling and moving listen.
Furay, already established as a writer of tender, clear-voiced ballads, added to these a series of exuberant, fast-paced songs that became Poco signature pieces.
The orchestra, an ebullient, avant-garde marching band that blends performance art with inventive new works and funky arrangements, offered a version of Frank Zappa's "Zomby Woof" by Peter Hess (the group's tenor saxophonist); an arrangement of Bjork's "Hyper-Ballad" by Alan Ferber; and Goran Bregovic's exuberant "Champagne".
Looking stiff (if dapper) in a form-fitting tuxedo, the Weeknd transformed his exuberant R&B track "In the Night" into a sleepy supper-club ballad complete with strings.
Her works were often described, however, as vigorous and exuberant, and they frequently made use of American themes (as in Bayou Ballads and Liberty Song).
The ballads aren't quite as good, but "Secret" is an unexpected delight: an exuberant but mean-spirited song about a modern romantic dilemma: What do you do when your gay best friend starts acting a bit too straight?
Recorded in 1969, the Leiber-Stoller ballad, inspired by Thomas Mann's story Disillusionment, perfectly straddled the 1960s and 70s in its mix of exuberant depression, particularly in America.
Accompanied on piano last Sunday night by Jennifer Giering (two of whose well-made songs were showcased), Mr. Winther performed a ballad-dominated program that swung from accessible art song (Mr. Gordon's "I Am Cherry Alive," a delightfully exuberant setting of a Delmore Schwartz poem) to pure pop playfulness.
An exuberant standout, Thanks For Saving My Life – at just under three minutes – is short compared to some of his longer, more well known ballads.
