Eva Cassidy has done it again. Simply Eva, the latest collection from the late singer/songwriter rose to #4 on the Official UK Albums charts yesterday becoming her fifth Top 5 posthumous release in the UK. It's such a shame Cassidy passed away so young. Who knows the kind of magic she'd be making in the studio today, but at least we have an entire catalog of music to keep her on the radio and in our hearts.
Not only is Cassidy proving to still be a success in the UK, she's also doing well in her native U.S.A. Simply Eva became the #1 best-selling album at Border Books and Music and landed the #8 spot on the Billboard Folk chart. Not too shabby. Simply Eva is a compilation of previously-unheard acoustic versions of known Cassidy classics. Released independently on Blix Street Records, the new album contains 12-beautiful tracks, the majority of which were taken from the original tape recordings.
Cassidy passed away from melanoma in 1996 after having made a name for herself performing in the local Washington D.C. area. Since her death, Blix Street Records, along with Cassidy's parents, have helped get Eva Cassidy's music out to the world. Songbird was released in 1998 and featured songs from two previous Cassidy albums including Sting's "Fields Of Gold" and her beautiful performance of "Over The Rainbow," which ultimately became a #1 hit on the UK Singles Chart in March 2001. The album took off in the UK going triple-platinum, selling over 900,000 and gold in the U.S. selling over 500,000. It's hard to believe that it's been 10 years since Cassidy's album, Songbird, peaked at #1 on the UK Albums Chart and with three consecutive posthumous UK No. 1 albums not to mention her posthumous duet with Katie Melua ("What A Wonderful World") Simply Eva looks to continue Cassidy's successful chart streak. Download Simply Eva on iTunes HERE.
Check out Eva Cassidy's Official Site