Randy Bachman

Randy Bachman - Jazz Thing - 2004 - Maximum Jazz

You won't find any hard or boogie rock here. However, you WILL find 11 good vocal & jazz guitar tracks. Randy Bachman's great career is founded on his incessant drive in creating music as a guitarist, songwriter, performer and producer. He has released many solo albums, and globally has collected over 120 gold and platinum albums and singles for creating music which has provided a soundtrack of the last 30 years of popular music. Many people still don’t realize Randy’s close association with jazz. It is often overlooked that Randy Bachman even as a teenager, had a great love of jazz, and is a superb and often underrated jazz guitarist. His wonderful and unique finger-picking guitar style is evident throughout this album. Randy composed "Let's Call It a Night" and "The First Time You Said Hello", and had a hand in writing six other tracks. Other tracks covered are Lew Brown & Sammy Fain's "That Old Feeling", Johnny Cash's "I Walk the Line", (played slowly, the way Johnny Cash originally intended), and Ira Gershwin's "Summertime" played with the late, great jazz guitarist, Lenny Breau. When Randy was 15, and learning guitar, he met Lenny. He had heard him on the radio and was deeply impressed by his technique. Living near each other in Winnipeg, they became good friends, and hung out together. Randy received some informal lessons from Lenny, and learned as much as he could from the great guitarist . As Randy Bachman's Rock 'N' Roll career bloomed, he never forgot the jazz influences that he got from Lenny. That influence can be heard in some of Randy’s songs such as “Lookin’ Out for #1", “Blue Collar” and "She’s Come Undun". Lenny Breau went on to become a renowned jazz guitarist in his own right, but in 1984 he passed away at an early age in LA. Lenny posthumously joins Randy on a couple of tracks. There have naturally been a few criticisms of this album. The album has been described as "jazz-schmaltz", and Randy has been slagged off about his "weak vocals" and "silly" and "trite lyrics". Comparisons have been made to jazz influenced BTO tracks like "Blue Collar", and "Lookin' Out for #1". It has also been said that "I Walk The Line" would have been "a better instrumental without vocals". If one is going to criticise an album for silly lyrics and weak vocals, then many, many great albums could easily be written off. A reviewer of this album on Amazon.com said that, "Sorry Randy but if ya can't sing anymore then play the guitar and hire someone else or make instrumentals. And please do us all a favor and put an end to the trite lyrics. My writing skills at age fifteen were better than this. "Breau's Place" & "I Walk The Line" saves the CD from being a complete throw away". The point here is understandably being missed, and obviously that review comes from a BTO fan. Tracks like BTOs "Looking Out For Number One" may have had a jazz touch, but BTO was primarily a hard rock band. "Jazz Thing" is not a Guess Who or Bachman Turner Overdrive album, and although it is difficult not to make comparisons to BTO, the album should be accepted for what it is, which is a collection of both original and traditional jazz songs of yesteryear, which showcases Randy Bachman's talent and enjoyment for jazz guitar music. Randy originally formed his "Jazz Thing" project to promote and demystify jazz music, which for too long has been regarded as an "elite" genre. With his project, he has played in many popular venues throughout Canada and elsewhere to enthusiastic audiences. Some of his sidemen have included Curtis Stigers on sax, Francois Houle on clarinet, Dave Young on bass, Joel Kroeker on guitar and vocals, Chris Gestrin on piano and keyboards, and Randy's longtime sidemen, Mick Dalla-Vee on bass and Roger Belanger on drums. Some of these artists also play on this album which brings one of pop music’s most enduring artists full circle. Randy Bachman is returning to walk down the path he never took in his earlier days. To keep the memory of Lenny Breau's music alive, Randy formed Guitarchives Music in the 1990s. The label restores and releases private tapes of Lenny Breau’s live performances. Such is Randy Bachman's great love and admiration for great jazz artists and jazz music. Check out Randy Bachman and The New Guitar Summit's terrific "Jazzthing II" album @ RBACH/NGS/JT2 and try and listen to Lenny Breau's great "Live at Bourbon St." album

TRACKS / COMPOSERS

1. Let's Call It a Night - Randy Bachman
2. In Blue - Randy Bachman, Charles Foskett, Lauren Field
3. That Old Feeling - Lew Brown, Sammy Fain
4. Rose Coloured Glasses - Randy Bachman, Greg Becker
5. Summertime - Music by Ira Gershwin: Lyrics by DuBose Heyward *6. Sentimental Fool - Randy Bachman, Denise McCann
7. I Walk the Line - Johnny Cash
8. Dead Cool - Randy Bachman, Bart Foley
9. The First Time You Said Hello - Randy Bachman
10. Breau's Place (Quiet and Blue) [Live] - Randy Bachman, Dave Young, Lenny Breau
11. Our Leaves Are Green Again - Randy Bachman, Stephan Moccio

N.B: * Thanks to Lou for track info
MUSICIANS

Randy Bachman - Guitar, Vocals
Joel Kroeker - Guitar, Vocals
Lenny Breau - Guitar
André Lachance, Dave Young Orchestra - Bass
Chris Gestrin - Fender Rhodes, Keyboards, Piano, Wurlitzer
Bill Sample - Keyboards, Piano
Stephan Moccio - Piano
Buff Allen, Craig Scott - Drums
Curtis Stigers - Saxophone
François Houle - Clarinet
Denise McCann - Background Vocals
Shawn Penner - Contributor

BIO

Randolph Charles Bachman, (born September 27, 1943) was lead guitarist, songwriter and a founding member for both the 1960s-70s rock band The Guess Who, and the 1970s rock band Bachman-Turner Overdrive. Bachman was also a member of the band Brave Belt with Chad Allan and a band called Ironhorse, and has recorded numerous solo albums. Born in Winnipeg, Canada, Randy Bachman has become a legendary figure in the rock and roll world through his talents as a guitarist, songwriter, performer and producer. He has earned over 120 Gold and Platinum album/singles awards around the world for performing and producing. His songwriting has garnered him the coveted #1 spot on radio play lists in over 20 countries and he has amassed over 40 million records sold. His songs have been recorded by numerous other artists and placed in dozens of television, movie and commercial soundtracks. His music has provided a veritable soundtrack of the last thirty years of popular music. THE GUESS WHO - In 1960, Bachman and Allan co-founded Al and The Silverstones in Winnipeg. By 1962, the band changed names to Chad Allan and the Expressions and later on to The Guess Who. In 1965, the Guess Who had a #1 hit in Canada with their cover of "Shakin' All Over", which also charted in the U.S. at #22. In 1966, Chad Allan left the band and Burton Cummings became the primary vocalist. Starting in 1968, the group released three successful albums: Wheatfield Soul (1968); Canned Wheat (1969); and American Woman (1970) which brought them mainstream attention. Bachman wrote or co-wrote (primarily with Cummings) most of the groups songs during this period. In early 1970, the "American Woman" single hit #1 on the U.S. charts, a first for a band from Canada. Due to health concerns and desiring a change in lifestyle, which would include spending more time with his young family, Randy left the Guess Who at the height of their success. While this move stunned the music world, Randy knew that he could never leave music behind. He formed Brave Belt - a county rock outfit in 1970 and experimented with a new musical style and line up that eventually metamorphosed into Bachman-Turner Overdrive. BACHMAN TURNER OVERDRIVE - Bachman, formed Brave Belt - a county rock outfit in 1970 and experimented with a new musical style and line up that eventually metamorphosed into Bachman-Turner Overdrive, releasing their first self-titled album, Bachman-Turner Overdrive in May, 1973. In December, 1973, BTO released their second LP, Bachman-Turner Overdrive II, which featured the hits "Takin' Care of Business", which charted at #12 in the U.S., and "Let It Ride", which rose to #23. In 1974, they released the LP Not Fragile which hit #1 on the album charts. It also contained the #1 single "You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet" and the hit "Roll On Down The Highway" which charted at number 14. BTO stayed on the charts with their next two albums, Four Wheel Drive and Head On, through the mid-1970s. The band began to fall apart in late 1976 with the recording of the Freeways album. Randy Bachman wrote or co-wrote all but one song and sang on every song but two. The album only scraped the charts at #70 in America and had no hit singles. He then left the band in mid-March 1977. POST B.T.O. - After his depature from BTO, Randy recorded a solo album called Survivor. It did not chart in the U.S. . He formed a band with bassist/ singer Tom Sparks called Ironhorse and released its debut album in 1979. It contained the single "Sweet Lui-Louise" and the single charted at #36 in the U.S. and #26 in Canada. Sparks left after the tour for this album and was replaced by Bob Ludwig. Ironhorse, with Ludwig, released another album, Everything Is Grey, in 1980. In 1981, Fred Turner joined Ironhorse and the band changed its name to Union. BTO had broken up in early 1980. Union released one album before disbanding. REUNIONS - Randy joined The Guess Who reunion in 1983 with Burton Cummings and other members of the American Woman era. They did a tour of Canada and released a live video performance of it. Once The Guess Who reunion ended, Randy rejoined a new BTO reunion, consisting of Randy, Fred Turner, Tim Bachman, and Garry Peterson of The Guess Who on drums. Robin Bachman and classic line up guitarist Blair Thornton could not join the reunion. Randy stayed with with this version of the band until 1987 and they put out an album in 1984. The classic Not Fragile line-up reformed in 1988 and they toured together until 1991 when Randy left the group. It would be the last time he played with BTO. The Guess Who reunited, including Randy, on August 8, 1999. Randy played on several tours with The Guess Who until July 31, 2003. Both he and Burton Cummings left the band and formed Bachman Cummings. They are currently on tour together in Canada. In 2000, he made a guest appearance on The Simpsons as himself with his former Bachman-Turner Overdrive bandmates, C.F. Turner and Robin Bachman. Simpsons creator Matt Groening (whose father is originally from Winnipeg), is a well known BTO fan. Homer Simpson yells at Bachman to "get to the working overtime part" while playing "Takin' Care of Business". In 2001 Bachman received an honorary Doctorate of Music from Brandon University in Brandon, Manitoba along with the other members of the Guess Who. In 2005 Bachman was awarded the Order of Manitoba, the highest award in the Province of Manitoba. Bachman, along with The Guess Who, was also the recipient of The Governor General’s Performing Arts Award, Canada's foremost distinction for excellence in the performing arts, in 2002. In 2008, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada. Bachman travels the world with his wife Denise to write with many European songwriters, including Douglas Carr (producer of the Swedish band Ace of Base) and Michael Saxell in Sweden. Bachman has also performed with Swedish rockers The Soundtrack of Our Lives and appears on a vinyl picturedisc with them from a live performance at Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada's Commodore Ballroom in 2004. Since the summer of 2005, Bachman created and is currently hosting the series Vinyl Tap on CBC Radio One, where he tells stories about music and musicians while playing appropriate recordings. Randy helped Kalan Porter on his CD 219 Days. He suggested that Kalan do a drone on his violin on one of his songs, In Spite Of It All. He was also featured in his song, And We Drive, playing a guitar solo near the end of the song. Bachman tours with his own band, the Randy Bachman Band and the Bachman-Cummings Band. He has also created a popular theatre show he calls "Every Song Tells A Story" featuring Bachman live and unplugged with his band, telling the stories behind the writing of his famous hits from the 1960s and 70s. Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings toured throughout Canada as Bachman & Cummings in the summer of 2006 with Toronto, Ontario, Canada's, The Carpet Frogs. Randy Bachman has also released an album of original melodic jazz songs called "Jazz Thing" which is available on his official website.Bachman's coast-to-coast CBC Radio One show Vinyl Tap, featuring Bachman playing audio recordings and reminiscing about his personal encounters with famous artists and musicians from his 50-year career in rock, runs from 7-9 p.m. every Saturday night and can be accessed via the CBC Radio One web site and Sirius channel 137. There is a replay of the Saturday show on the following Friday night at 11 pm. Streaming audio of the show is available through the internet in every Canadian time zone at http://www.cbc.ca/listen/ Although Randy and Fred turner are working on new songs for Randy's album, Randy has been noted for trying to put a Bachman-Turner Overdrive reunion together. However, the only former members of BTO that have been in any known discussions are Fred Turner and Randy Bachman. RANDY - Randy's career has been built upon his unstoppable drive to work at creating music. He has released numerous solo albums throughout his career, and has simultaneously worked at producing for other artists. His production/writing work with Canadian rock band Trooper generated gold and platinum record in the 1970's. His love of guitar music and a desire to support some unsung and legendary guitar greats including his early mentor Lenny Breau, led him to found the jazz guitar record label Guitarchives which rescues and releases otherwise lost archival guitar music. As well he founded Ranbach Music, a label which releases archival Guess Who recordings, and other material which never made it to CD. [This page was last modified 15:39, 5 July 2009 - from & © http://www.guitarmasterclass.net/wiki/index.php/Randy_Bachman ]

Jackie Allen

Jackie Allen - Tangled - 2006 - Blue Note

On her Blue Note debut (and eighth recording overall), vocalist Jackie Allen stretches her already crossover approach to where the seams show. Thank God. She is a fine jazz singer and has a way with ballads and standards that is her own to be sure -- and she records a couple of them here -- but her gift with more pop-oriented material is utterly distinctive and even innovative, since there isn't another singer out there who phrases like her. Tangled was produced with great taste by Eric Hochberg -- who also chaired her last session, Love Is Blue, and has played bass with everyone from the jazz stalwart Kurt Elling to one of the greatest crossover folk and jazz singers in history, the great Terry Callier. The set has a few standards, like Rodgers & Hart's "You're Nearer" and "Everything I've Got Belongs to You." But the standards on this program are -- heresy of heresies -- the very things that hold it back from being a pop masterpiece. She has proven over and over again that she can sing standards and ballads with the best of them. But her treatment of Van Morrison's "When Will I Ever Learn," which opens the album, is a wake-up call even to her many fans. It's revelatory and sounds effortless. It's a revealing and poignant treatment of one of Morrison's most overtly spiritual songs and most difficult to grasp hold of. Likewise, her read of her guitarist John Moulder and bassist Hans Sturm's "Cold Gray Eyes" brings Celtic, rock, and blues influences to bear in a dramatic, tough, and deeply emotive performance. Her own Brazilian-flavored "If I Had" is lightweight samba jazz in the verse, but the refrains are gorgeous. The title cut is full of beautiful electric guitars creating a nocturnal tension that is deceptively noir-ish. This is the kind of torn love ballad that expresses through the grain in her voice what the words -- though burningly direct -- can't begin to get to. The funky "Slip" is also an original that struts and slides with a tough groove. Her reading of Donald Fagen's "Do Wrong Shoes" jazzes up a tune in high-camp style that had a tougher edge as a pop-jazz number. The bookend track, Randy Newman's "Living Without You," is another argument for Allen's pop phrasing. She gets the underlying country-soul in Newman's song, and the sheer emotion that needs to be expressed in its lyric doesn't lend itself to the studied dramatic sentimentality in many torch songs and standards -- especially as they are sung in this day and age (usually by up-and-comers trying to prove their mettle before they have the chops, or by veterans whose careers are devoid of imagination or discipline and fall back on the most difficult material to try to gain a few more miles from the empty tank). It may take another record or so -- or a bona fide adult alternative "hit" selected by a radio programmer with some vision -- to convince Allen to go the direction she could go effortlessly and win herself a slew of new fans. © Thom Jurek © 2011 Rovi Corporation. All Rights Reserved http://www.allmusic.com/album/tangled-r837122/review

Heard Jackie Allen performing the Donald Fagen-penned "Do Wrong Shoes" the other day and decided I'd better check out "Tangled" - the fast-rising, Milwaukee-born singer's latest release. If you haven't heard the song - Allen sashays her way through a hilariously sassy and brassy take on the "you done me wrong" song like a modern day Bessie Smith. Punctuated by Orbert Davis' mocking muted trumpet, the song stands out like an updated and welcome return to a bygone era amongst the staid reditions of standards that clutter the atmosphere. Being a Jackie Allen neophyte, I wasn't sure just what to expect from "Tangled," and as such was somewhat taken aback when the rest of the recording sounded nothing like the Fagen song. Ranging from covers of Van Morrison and Randy Newman to songs from the Rodgers and Hart songbook to originals and embracing everything from gospel, blues and soul to folk and samba, "Tangled" is deep and multilayered, and reveals a singer casting a wide net into diverse waters. The title itself fascinates me, as I used to get into arguments with an ex about what she perceived to be "tangles" in my life and thinking. She found my inability to achive clarity of purpose troubling - I, in turn, believed that my bouts with self doubt and confusion were simply an aspect of the human condition. We'd all like to be devout and faithful and placid, but the shifts and turns of modern life lead us in many directions and make us the people we are: flawed yet striving for the divine. Appropriately, Allen's choice of tunes on "Tangled" display "tangles" in the relationships between lovers, family, God, nature, the rest of the world, and even ourselves. Beautifully produced by the seemingly ubiquitous Eric Hochberg, "Tangled" features Allen's inimitable band consisting of husband/songwriter Hans Sturm on bass, expressive guitar colorist John Moulder, and two of the finest keyboardists around in Laurence Hobgood and Ben Lewis - and their sensitive shadings shape the bedrock over which Allen's sweet and airy flights may hover. I'd also like to give a shout-out to drummer Dane Richeson whose superb work was accidentially left uncredited by the label. The gospel lament of Van Morrison's "When Will I ever Learn" starts things off with an emotional surge (Lewis' churchy organ work is a treat) and has become my theme song, while Moulder and Sturm's plaintive folk song "Coal Grey Eyes" chills like a plunge into the Northern Atlantic sea off a craggy Nova Scotia coastline. "You're Nearer" is a tasteful exercise in bringing Rodgers and Hart melodicism to a modern audience, while the Allen original "If I Had" (one of three co-written with poet Oryna Schiffman) shows the singer can form a conga-line when the party calls for it. The songs swirl and swim in and out of the center of my consciousness, and right now it is the title track that is encircling those aforementioned entangled synapse. Moulder especially combusts here with his bluesy, edgy fretwork. The soulful "Slip" (yesterday's favorite) is another Allen original that is almost Motown in its approach - with horns supplied by Davis and tenor saxman Steve Eisen; while the day-before-yesterday's fav - "You'll Never Learn" creeps uneasily under your skin and stays with you thanks to Lewis' cocktail piano trills and Allen's slow smoldering delivery. In yet another shocking change of pace, Allen desconstructs another Rogers and Hart number - "Everything I've Got Belongs to You" and the results register another success. "Hot Stone Soup" by Sturm, is a lilting lullaby to an ageing parent (in this case, his mother), while the bittersweetly romatic Mandel-Bergman/Bergman waltz "Solitary Moon" may be the best of the ballads and my new favorite (oh, I'm so tangled, aren't I?). Allen's wistful version of Randy Newman's "Living Without You" brings this profoundly trenchant collection to a close and, if trends hold, will probably be my favorite song tomorrow. Both orderly and fluid in manner and presentation, yet surprising in its quick shifts that encompass many directions, in "Tangled" Allen and her band have given the listener an empathetic and entrancing soundtrack to the travails and chaotic disorder we face every day in this transient, often beautiful and sometimes bewildering world. Review by & © Brad Walseth © http://www.jazzchicago.net/jackiea.html

Known predominantly as a jazz vocalist, Jackie Allen's "Tangled" is a great eclectic mix of jazz, pop, soul, Latin rhythms, folk, and blues. Donald Fagen's "Do Wrong Shoes", Rodgers & Hart's "Everything I've Got Belongs To You" and "You're Nearer" are definitely in the jazz mould. There are also great covers of Van Morrison's "When Will I Ever Learn", Randy Newman's "Living Without You", and several other unusual choices. Jazz Times in 2006 noted that "As hybrids go Allen is a rare breed. For like fine wine, Allen gets not only better with age, but also more complex... It's all prime stuff." Listen to Jackie's "Which?" album

STEELY DAN TRIVIA - According to Jackie, Donald Fagen’s "Do Wrong Shoes" had never been previously recorded. “Donald sent me a cassette of him singing and accompanying himself on piano. I loved it and decided to put a swing feel to it. It’s the most popular tune of the album when we tour.” Donald, speaking about Jackie said that “Jackie Allen ranks very high among all other present day singers. She gets the harmonies of the songs as completely as she trusts her way with time. Her phrasing is assured, suggesting a unique kind of tenderness. The emotional impact she conveys is extraordinary."

TRACKS / COMPOSERS

1 When Will I Ever Learn - Van Morrison 5:51
2 Coal Grey Eyes - J. Moulder, H. Sturm 3:43
3 You're Nearer - Rodgers, Hart 4:14
4 If I Had - J. Allen, O. Schiffman 3:26
5 Tangled - J. Allen, O. Schiffman 4:25
6 Slip - J. Allen, O. Schiffman 4:03
7 You'll Never Learn - Michael Dees 5:13
8 Everything I've Got Belongs To You - Rodgers, Hart 3:36
9 Hot Stone Soup - Hans Sturm 3:44
10 Do Wrong Shoes - Donald Fagen 3:16
11 Solitary Moon - A. Bergman, M. Bergman, Mandel 5:01
12 Living Without You - Randy Newman 2:56

MUSICIANS

Jackie Allen - Vocals
John Moulder - Guitar
Hans Sturm - Bass
Ben Lewis - Fender Rhodes, Organ, Piano
Laurence Hobgood - Fender Rhodes, Piano
Dane Richeson - Drums
Steve Eisen - Tenor Sax, Flute
Orbert Davis - Trumpet
Sue Conway, Suzanne Palmer, Yvonne Gage, Eric Hochberg - Background Vocals

SHORT BIO

A talented jazz singer based in the Chicago area, Jackie Allen grew up in Milwaukee and Madison. Part of a very musical family, she played French horn early on in addition to showing talent as a singer. She attended the University of Wisconsin, where she learned a great deal about jazz; among her teachers was bassist Richard Davis. By 1987, she had moved back to Milwaukee, where for three years she sang regularly at the Wyndham Hotel while joined by organist Melvin Rhyne. In 1990, Allen moved to Chicago, where she has performed regularly as a singer who falls between jazz and cabaret. In the early '90s, Jackie Allen recorded Never Let Me Go, her debut album for the Lake Shore Jazz label; a long hiatus preceded the release of Which six years later. © Scott Yanow © 2011 Rovi Corporation. All Rights Reserved http://www.allmusic.com/artist/jackie-allen-p165137

ALBUM NOTES / BIO [© http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/jackieallen4]

Crossing over for a singer whose foundation resounds jazz was a relatively rare phenomenon back in 1994 when Jackie Allen recorded her debut album, Never Let Me Go. However, that didn’t dissuade her from finding common ground between the jazz and pop music worlds. Twelve years later, with Tangled, her remarkable Blue Note Records debut—and eighth CD overall—Allen continues to explore soundscapes that pay homage to both standby and contemporary standards while crafting originals that richly complement the covers. With Blue Note, Allen joins a stable of pioneering female vocalists—Cassandra Wilson, Norah Jones, Patricia Barber, Dianne Reeves—who appeal to both adult-oriented music camps. “My tastes in music now are not that much different than when I began to record",” says Allen, who lives in Indiana and has a strong base in Chicago, “although I wasn’t quite as adventurous then as I am now.” Writing in JazzTimes of her two earlier albums (2003’s The Men in My Life and 2004’s Love Is Blue, both on the now-defunct A440 label and that have been purchased by Blue Note), Christopher Loudon remarked, “As hybrids go, Allen is a rare breed. Her firm roots are clearly folk-rock…but they are wedded to a keen jazz sensibility.” His assessment of Love Is Blue, which ranges from a tune associated with Frank Sinatra to a number by Annie Lennox? “Dazzling.” Allen brings that same expressive power, heartfelt sparkle and stirring allure to Tangled, a 12-tune collection that ups the ante in her pursuit of singing soul into song. “I’m not too far afield from my earlier albums, but I am evolving and moving forward,” she says. “My music goes into many different directions, from the jazzy to the more refined that looks at the darker side of love.” As for the theme of the new disc, the title is apropos, she says: “I like singing about the complexities of relationships, the entanglements. That’s the glue that holds the collection together, the umbrella that spreads over all the songs.” Produced by Chicago-based bandleader/bassist/composer Eric Hochberg (who also produced The Men in My Life), Tangled features Allen’s core band of keyboardists Laurence Hobgood and Ben Lewis, guitarist John Moulder (whose multi-voiced six-string lines highlight the arrangements) bassist Hans Sturm (Allen’s husband) and drummer, Dane Richeson. The group brings two originals to the mix (the impassioned, rock-edged “Coal Grey Eyes” by Moulder/Sturm and the heartrending “Hot Stone Soup” by Sturm), while Allen offers three songs (collaborations with poet/writer Oryna Schiffman): the title track, “If I Had” and “Slip.” Old-school standards include two Rodgers and Hart numbers (“You’re Nearer” and “Everything I Got Belongs to You”), Johnny Mandel’s “Solitary Moon” and Michael Dees’ “You’ll Never Learn.” They are balanced by such pop-originated fare as Van Morrison’s “When Will I Ever Learn,” Donald Fagen’s “Do Wrong Shoes” and Randy Newman’s “Living Without You.” Song choice, Allen explains, was a collaborative undertaking among her, her band mates and Blue Note, with arrangements largely developed by her and the group. Tangled opens with the moving Morrison number given a gospel touch with a choir-like vocal arrangement. “This song has more depth harmonically than some of Van’s other songs we looked at,” says Allen. “Originally we recorded it with just the band, but when the production budget was bumped up, we went back in to the studio and came up the vocal arrangement on the spot.” The album closes with a contemplative take on Newman’s tune, given a beautiful balladic read by Allen. She says, “It turned out different than we thought. The way it’s arranged has a country feel.” As for the Fagen tune, given a jaunty treatment with sassy horns, Allen explains that it’s never been recorded. “We heard a cassette of Donald playing this just on the piano, and we decided to put a swing to it. He’s heard our version, and he likes it.” Fagen adds, “Jackie Allen ranks very high among all other present day singers. She gets the harmonies of the songs as completely as she trusts her way with time. Her phrasing is assured, suggesting a unique kind of tenderness. The emotional impact she conveys is extraordinary." The Rodgers and Hart tunes come from two distinctly different inclinations. The gorgeously rendered “You’re Nearer,” arranged by Hobgood, was learned by Allen from an early Tony Bennett album, while the upbeat, black-humored “Everything I Got Belongs to You” is a spunky, funky outing that former Blue Note singer Holly Cole once covered. Mandel’s “Solitary Moon,” with the tender calm gently buoyed by Hobgood’s solo and Allen’s dreamy wordless vocals, was once recorded by Shirley Horn (“I’m such a big fan of hers,” says Allen). As for “You’ll Never Learn,” arguably the most sumptuous tune of the 12-pack, Allen recalls hearing it as a swaggering swing version like Sinatra late in his career. “When I brought this to the session, everyone joked with me, ‘Are you out of your mind?’” she says. “But I knew there was something to this song. So I changed the phrasing, creating a darker Latin mood and we did this at the end of the sessions. Blue Note loved it.” The three noteworthy tunes Allen contributes were written with Schiffman while their respective sons, two days apart in age, played. “Oryna gave me a stack of her ideas for lyrics and told me to turn them upside down if I wanted,” says Allen. “From my jazz background, I can improvise melodies, so then we worked on putting her words and my music together.” They came up with “If I Had” that grooves with a Brazilian music vibe, the gripping blues “Tangled” (“It’s about laughing in the face of adversity,” says Allen) and the uptempo sexy/feisty “Slip.” Diverse in its musical scope, Tangled is jazz-infused, pop-charged and, to Allen’s way of thinking, in harmony with her musical life. She came up listening to the rock music of her siblings (everything from the Beatles to Emerson, Lake and Palmer), became attuned to the pop of Elton John and Billy Joel and grew up hearing jazz from her Dixieland music playing father. "Allen performed with keyboard great Mel Rhyne and studied in college with renowned jazz bassist Richard Davis, from whom she learned the standards as well as found wings via improvisation. (She’s committed to passing on what she’s learned as a teacher in her own right, currently educating up-and-comers at Chicago’s Roosevelt University, with previous classroom gigs at the Wisconsin Conservatory in Milwaukee; Elmhurst College, outside of Chicago; and the Old Town School in Chicago.) “The elements of jazz and pop have always been mixed in my life,” says Allen. “They all swing around in my head.” In 1994, when Allen began her recording journey, that jazz-cum-pop outlook may have seemed cloudy. Today the climate is different. Tangled shines. PERFORMANCES: Jackie's extraordinary talent has taken her across the globe. She has toured Morocco as part of a cultural goodwill tour, Brazil with her voice/bass duo, and China where she was the only jazz artist to headline at the Beijing Music Festival. She performs frequently in Europe having appeared twice at the North Sea Jazz Festival, the Mittenwald and Reutlingen Festivals in Germany, and the Edinburgh Fringe and Scottish Double Bass Festivals. Nationally she has toured throughout the midwest and the west coast, appearing numerous times in Los Angeles. She has performed at the International Association of Jazz Educators Conference in New Orleans, with the Muncie Symphony Orchestra in an Evening of Cole Porter and at the Ravinia, Detroit, and Chicago Jazz Festivals. TEACHING & MORE: Jackie Allen, one of Chicago's most influential and respected jazz educators, joined the faculty of Chicago Center for the Performing Arts (Roosevelt University) to teach jazz voice in Fall 2005. She has taught many successful Chicago vocalists at Elmhurst College and at The Old Town School of Folk Music and is frequently featured with university jazz ensembles as a guest performer and clinician including Roosevelt University, DePaul University, the University of Wisconsin, the University of Iowa, and Ball State University. She co-produced and starred in the sold-out "America 1941" with actor John Mahoney (Martin Crane on TV's "Frasier") to benefit The National Academy For Local Schools and served as a Governor of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS) for two terms. Jackie is a Wisconsin native who grew up surrounded by music. A Wisconsin native, Allen was introduced to music by her father, Louis (Gene) Allen, a Dixieland tuba player who taught each of his five children to play a brass instrument (young Jackie's first instrument was the French horn). She attended the University of Wisconsin, Madison as music major, studying under the venerated Professor of Bass and Jazz History Richard Davis, himself a prominent artist on 1960's Blue Note recordings.

Patti Austin

Patti Austin - For Ella - 2002 - Playboy Jazz
Patti Austin is well qualified to record an album in the style of Ella Fitzgerald, having spent her career shadowing the paths taken by Fitzgerald and her contemporaries. Although she has worked in R&B-oriented adult pop much of the time, she is clearly in the tradition of Fitzgerald, and in 1988 she even recorded an album of standards that she tellingly titled The Real Me. For Ella easily could be the sequel to that collection. Austin traveled to Köln, Germany, to record a program of songs associated with Fitzgerald with the WDR Big Band conducted by Patrick Williams. Many of the songs, of course, are just ones Fitzgerald happened to sing but that have broader associations as well, such as George & Ira Gershwin's "Our Love Is Here to Stay" and "The Man I Love," though others, such as "A Tisket a Tasket," inevitably evoke Fitzgerald. Austin does not, for the most part, attempt to sing in Fitzgerald's style, giving listeners her own interpretations that, in Williams' neo-swing arrangements, nevertheless hark back to the 1950s. That's fine for the most part, though the version of "Miss Otis Regrets," which treats it as a gospel performance in the manner of Mahalia Jackson, without the slightest touch of humor, is a misstep. On two occasions, Austin does copy Fitzgerald, re-creating the scat sections of "You'll Have to Swing It (Mr. Paganini)" and "How High the Moon." That obviates the problem of having to compete with Fitzgerald on her greatest improvisational triumphs, but it's a technical achievement of an odd sort. Austin is better off putting her own stamp on the songs; that she does very well. © William Ruhlmann © 2010 Rovi Corporation. All Rights Reserved http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:hnftxqw0ldae

Patti Austin, Patrick Williams and Gregg Field have created in For Ella a dazzling tribute to Ella Fitzgerald, one of the greatest jazz/pop vocalists of all time. Austin's vocal performance is stunning; instead of trying to mimic Ella, she has absorbed Ella's vocal style into her own voice, and the result is an amazing synthesis of the two singers. This disc is sonically stunning as well, with production by drummer Field that allows the sound literally to sizzle with incredible power and clarity. Equally responsible for the sonic pyrotechnics is Williams, who arranged and conducted the WDR Big Band with arrangements and performances that are perfect for these songs. Pop the disc into your player and "Too Close for Comfort" will immediately knock your socks off with a big band extravaganza that sounds like what you might imagine the best big bands of the period might sound like, captured with today's state of the art recording technology. The horns punctuate the song in the most amazing sound quality, they literally leap out of the speakers then dissolve into a silky smooth bass and cymbal riff. You could demo your sound system with this stuff. "Honeysuckle Rose" starts out all cool and smooth with voice, bass, drums and cymbals, with the big band coming in right on time later in the song, sounding like the cream of all the big band talent that ever worked the genre. Signature song "You'll Have to Swing It (Mr. Paganini)" also starts out nice and smooth with a top-flight string section. Again the big band kicks in later, and Austin gets to belt the slowed down last verse. Who knew that big band jazz/pop could sound this great? George and Ira Gershwin are represented here on three tunes; this version of "Our Love is Here to Stay" could be the best rendition I've ever heard. It's slow and sultry with a nice muted horn solo and perfectly subdued backing by the big band. I might have preferred another song in it's place, but "A Tisket A Tasket" is a unquestionably an Ella signature tune which is done total justice by Austin's interpretation, and ya just gotta love that big band. Cole Porter's "Miss Otis Regrets" has a reserved beginning section that is followed by a bluesy, almost gospel belting middle, then switches back to reserved for the finish; the vocal changes are astonishing. On "Satin Doll," Austin excels with vocals that are strong, confident and powerful, while totally capturing the nuances of Ella's vocal styling - most impressive. Along with 11 numbers from the huge Fitzgerald repertoire, there is one new original tune, "Hearing Ella Sing," which pays lyrical tribute to nicely complement the Ella classics. For Ella succeeds on every possible level, and in the process not only pays Ella Fitgerald the ultimate tribute, but stands as a major milestone in the careers of Patti Austin and everyone else involved with this project. In the liner notes, Austin says "The process of memorizing these vocals brought me closer and closer to the soul of Ella's awesome talent. She was teaching me things I never knew before about singing. The immense power of her talent lives on in her music and I hope that I will be able to help keep her memory alive in some small way with this recording." Mission accomplished.- © Rambles written by William Kates published 14 June 2003 © http://www.rambles.net/austin_4ella02.html

Patti Austin’s cool, sophisticated vocals have made her a hugely popular artist in jazz, R&B and pop. On the Grammy nominated “For Ella", Patti does not try to mimic Ella Fitzgerald. She absorbs the great lady's vocal style into her own voice, and this amazing synthesis results in a glowing tribute to the late, great legend. The tracks were recorded at WDR Studio 4 Köln, Germany between June 19-22 & 28, 2001 and at Köln Philharmonic Hall on June 26, 2001. Listen to Patti Austin's stunning "The Real Me" album

TRACKS / COMPOSERS

1 Too Close For Comfort - George Weiss , Jerry Bock , Larry Holofcener 3:56
2 Honeysuckle Rose - Andy Razaf , Thomas Waller 4:13
3 You'll Have To Swing It (Mr. Paganini) - Sam Coslow 4:22
4 Our Love Is Here To Stay - George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin 5:28
5 A Tisket A Tasket - Ella Fitzgerald , Van Alexander 2:49
6 Miss Otis Regrets - Cole Porter 4:00 7 Hard Hearted Hannah, (The Vamp Of Savannah) - Charles Bates , Jack Yellen , Milton Ager , Robert Wilcox Bigelow 3:28
8 But Not For Me - George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin 3:53
9 Satin Doll - Billy Strayhorn , Edward Kennedy Ellington , John H Mercer 2:52
10 The Man I Love - George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin 3:29
11 Hearing Ella Sing - Arthur Hamilton , Patrick Williams 2:53
12 How High The Moon - William M Lewis Jr. , Nancy Hamilton 4:31

MUSICIANS

Vocals - Patti Austin
Guitar - Paul Shigihara
Bass - John Goldsby
Piano - Frank Chastenier
Drums - Gregg Field
Saxophone - Harald Rosenstein , Heiner Wiberny , Jens Neufang , Olivier Peters , Rolf Römer
Strings - WDR String Ensemble Köln
Trombone - Bernt Laukamp , Dave Horler , Ludwig Nuss
Trombone [Bass] - Lucas Schmid
Trumpet - John Marshall , Klaus Osterloh , Rick Kiefer , Rob Bruynen
Trumpet [Lead] - Andy Haderer
Cello [Celli] - Albert Jung , George Heimbach , Tilmann Fischer , Ulrike Schäfer
Viola - Bernhard Oll , Kai Stowasser , Katja Püschel , Stephan Blaumer , Wilfried Engel
Violin - Adrian Bleyer , Chiharu Yuki , Chizuko Takahashi , Christoph Seybold , Colin Harrison , Dirk Otte , Ingmar Püschel , Johannes Oppelcz , Koenraad Ellegiers , Manuela Belchior , Mischa Salevic , Sonja Wiedebusch , Ursula Maria Berg

BIO

A professional since the age of five, Patti Austin was a protégé of Dinah Washington and Sammy Davis, Jr. A 1969 single for United Artists titled "Family Tree" cracked the R&B Top 50. Austin cut her debut LP, End of a Rainbow, for Creed Taylor's CTI label in 1976, followed by Havana Candy in 1977 and Body Language in 1980. She sang lead vocals for Japanese koto player Yutaka Yokokura on "Love Light" in 1978, did a duet with Michael Jackson on "It's the Falling in Love" for Off the Wall, and sang "The Closer I Get to You" on Tom Browne's album in 1979. Austin dueted with George Benson on "Moody's Mood for Love" in 1980. She sang backgrounds for sessions by Houston Person, Noel Pointer, Ralph McDonald, Angela Bofill, and Roberta Flack. Austin did vocals on Quincy Jones' The Dude LP in 1981, and was featured on the hit "Razzamatazz." She inked a solo deal on Jones' Qwest label, and her 1982 LP Every Home Should Have One included the number one pop hit (number nine R&B) "Baby, Come to Me," which got widespread exposure via the ABC soap opera General Hospital. The follow-up single, "How Do You Keep the Music Playing," was the theme for the film Best Friends. Both songs paired Austin with James Ingram. She continued recording for Jones' Qwest label through the '80s, but couldn't recapture her pop or R&B success, despite working with several top producers, including Jam-Lewis in 1985. Austin switched to GRP in 1990 and recorded Love Is Gonna Getcha, with the singles "Through the Test of Time" and "Good in Love." She subsequently recorded Carry On and Live in 1991 and 1992. Street of Dreams followed in 1999 and On the Way to Love appeared in summer 2001. Her lovely tribute to Ella Fitzgerald, For Ella, appeared in spring 2002. Nearly five years later, Avant Gershwin was issued. © Ron Wynn © 2010 Rovi Corporation. All Rights Reserved http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:wifixqw5ldae~T1



BIO (WIKIPEDIA)
Patti Austin (born August 10, 1950) is an American Grammy-winning R&B and jazz music singer. Austin was born in Harlem, New York. She made her debut at the Apollo Theater at age four and had a contract with RCA Records when she was only five. Quincy Jones and Dinah Washington have proclaimed themselves as her godparents. By the late 1960s Austin was a prolific session musician and commercial jingle singer. During the 1980s, signed to Jones's Qwest Records, she began her most prolific hitmaking period. She charted twenty R&B songs between 1969 and 1991 and had success on the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart, where she hit number one in 1981 with "Do You Love Me?" / "The Genie". The album containing that hit, Every Home Should Have One, also produced her biggest mainstream hit. "Baby, Come To Me", a duet with James Ingram, initially peaked at number 73 on the Hot 100 in early 1982. After being featured as the love theme in a prominent storyline on the soap opera General Hospital, the song re-entered the pop chart in October and went to number one in February 1983. The single was certified Gold by the RIAA. She would later team up again with Ingram for "How Do You Keep The Music Playing". That year, Austin's single "It's Gonna Be Special" was featured on the soundtrack for the Olivia Newton-John/John Travolta film Two of a Kind. Though the film was not the major success envisioned for the re-teaming of the Grease stars, the soundtrack went Platinum and Austin's single, produced by Quincy Jones, became one of her highest-profile hits. "It's Gonna Be Special" peaked at #5 on the Dance charts, #15 on the R&B charts, and charted on the Hot 100 in 1984. The song also appeared on her self-titled album of that year, and its follow-up, "Rhythm of the Streets", remixed by John "Jellybean" Benitez, narrowly missed Billboard's Dance Top Ten, though it peaked higher on Hi-NRG charts. The two songs were featured on a double-A-side 12" single. For "Rhythm of the Streets" Austin shot her first music video. Austin released her third album in three years entitled Gettin' Away With Murder. In addition to the title track, she had two more hit singles, "Honey For The Bees" (#24 R&B and #6 Dance) and "The Heat of Heat". Produced by Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, noted for their later work with Janet Jackson, the latter track returned Austin to the top 15 of the R&B charts for what would be the last time to date. It would also be her last Hot 100 charting to date, although she would score a top-5 dance hit with the single Reach that appeared originally on her 1994 CD That Secret Place. She next appeared with Jeff Bridges and Joan Allen in Francis Ford Coppola's critically acclaimed period piece Tucker: The Man and his Dream (1988). That year, Austin released The Real Me, a collection of standards which garnered her the first of several Top 10 showings on the Jazz Albums chart. She sang the duet "It's the Falling in Love" with Michael Jackson on his album Off The Wall. Other duet partners include George Benson ("Moody's Mood for Love" and "Keep Your Dreams Alive"), and Luther Vandross ("I'm Gonna Miss You In The Morning"). In 1985 she sang lead vocals on a collaboration with her producer, Narada Michael Walden, and the single, "Gimme, Gimme, Gimme", went top 40 on the R&B charts. In 1991, she recorded the duet "You Who Brought Me Love" with music legend Johnny Mathis, which was received with critical acclaim. That same year she was invited to be a guest on a Johnny Mathis television special that was broadcast across North America. Austin led a new group of Raelettes for the 2006 album Ray Charles + Count Basie Orchestra = Genius². That group also featured veteran session singer Valerie Pinkston and members of the group Perry. During a 2007 interview promoting her latest recording, Austin reflected how as a teenager she reluctantly attended one of Judy Garland's last concerts and the experience helped focus her career, stating "She (Judy Garland) ripped my heart out. I wanted to interpret a lyric like that, to present who I was at the moment through the lyric." In 2007 Patti Austin participated in the Avo Session Basel with a program dedicated to Ella Fitzgerald. In 2008, fifty-three years after getting her first record contract, Patti Austin was awarded her first Grammy, winning Best Jazz Vocal Album for Avant Gershwin at the 50th annual Grammy Awards. The award came for her ninth nomination in that category. She reported to Jim Newsom of Portfolio Weekly in 2006 “I just lost 140 pounds. “I had gastric bypass surgery a year and a half ago, and my life was saved by it. “I went to a doctor for a complete physical because I had a torn meniscus in my knee. He said, ‘You’ve got to lose this weight —- you’ve got type II diabetes, you have asthma and you’re menopausal. You’ve got to get rid of this weight and you’ve got to get rid of it fast. This is the best way for you to do it.’” Austin is one of over 70 artists singing on "We Are the World: 25 for Haiti", a charity single in aid of the 2010 Haiti earthquake.

Cæcilie Norby

Cæcilie Norby - London/Paris - 2004 - Copenhagen Records

Caecilie Norby is a singer with an unusual repertoire that not only includes some jazz standards, but a few pop tunes of the past 30 years (including "Spinning Wheel" and "The Look of Love"). She has a strong voice and a style that shows potential. Born in Denmark to parents active in the classical music world, Norby's background is actually in rock, recording with Frontline in 1985 and spending 1986-1993 as half of the rock group One Two. However, she also sang occasionally with a small jazz group in clubs, and pianist Niels Lan Doky was impressed enough to offer to produce her first jazz record. Caecilie Norby, whose greatest musical influence is early Nancy Wilson, recorded two sets released domestically by Blue Note. © Scott Yanow © 2010 Rovi Corporation. All Rights Reserved http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll

Cæcilie Norby was born on September 9th 1964 in Frederiksberg (Denmark). In 1982 she was one of the founders of the band Street Beat and from 1983 she was part of the Jazz/Funk group Frontline, which released the albums "Frontline" and "Frontlife". From 1985 to 1993 she was part of the group One Two. In 1995 she released the album "Cæcilie Norby" on the Blue Note label. In 1996 she released "My Corner Of The Sky". Her third album "Queen Of Bad Excuses" was released in 1999, followed by "First Conversation" in 2002. In 2005 she released her great "Slow Fruit" album. "London/Paris" was recorded during a European tour at the Pizza Express Jazz Club, Soho, London and the Sunside Jazz Club, Rue de Lombards, Paris in 2003. "The album gives a dusty atmospheric sound with Ulf Wakenius (Sweden) on guitar and Xavier Desandre Navarre (France) on percussion. "London/Paris" is a bouquet of the best jazz standards and pop classics transformed to new versions in experimental and playful ways" A good album from a great jazz vocalist, very reminiscent of Nancy Wilson. "African Fairytale" with original lyrics by Cæcilie is a brilliant interpretation of Wayne Shorter’s classic, and is arguably the outstanding track on the album. Listen to her "Slow Fruit", and "My Corner of the Sky" albums

TRACKS / COMPOSERS

1 Face It Girl, It's Over - Badale , Stanton
2 How Deep Is Your Love - Gibb
3 But Not For Me - G.& I.Gerschwin
4 Both Sides Now - J.Mitchell
5 Cuban Cigars - C.Norby, L.Danielsson
6 In A Sentimental Mood - D.Ellington
7 Rules Of The Road - Leigh, Coleman
8 The Good Life - Reardon, Distel
9 You Don't Know What Love Is - Raye, DePaul
10 Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word - E. John, B. Taupin
11 African Fairytale - C.Norby, W.Shorter

MUSICIANS

Vocals - Cæcilie Norby
Guitar - Ulf Wakenius
Bass, Cello - Lars Danielsson
Piano [Grand] - Carsten Dahl
Piano [Grand], Synthesizer - Jesper Nordenström
Drums - Morten Lund
Percussion - Xavier Desandre Navarre

BIO

Cæcilie Norby has been celebrated by fans, critics and many of the world's greatest musicians. In Europe she was one of the very first who contributed to bridge the gap between Jazz and the young traditionally rock oriented audiences. She has released 4 of her 7 solo albums on the prestigious BLUE NOTE Records, recieved awards and selling thousands of albums in Europe, US, Japan and South Africa. In 1982 she was one of the founders of the band Street Beat, where she was a vocalist for the next 2 years. From 1983 she was part of the Jazz/Funk group Frontline, which released 2 very successful albums "Frontline" and "Frontlife", and was awarded the prestigious Ben Webster prize. In the former Danish music magazine MM, a readers poll bestowed prizes on the orchestra for "Jazz-act of the year", "Live-act of the year", "Most promising act", "Album of the year" and Cæcilie was elected "Soloist of the year". In 1985 she launched on a long cooperation with the singer Nina Forsberg in the highly popular Pop/Rock group One Two. The group existed right up to 1993 and recorded 3 albums; "One Two", "Hvide Løgne" and "Getting Better" which sold approx. 250,000 copies in Denmark alone. The year of 1986 saw Cæcilie representing Denmark in an international Jazz orchestra at the Knokke Festival in Belgium. In 1990 Cæcilie's father wrote the work "Concerto for two sopranos" for Zealand Symphonic Orchestra. The two sopranos were Cæcilie herself and her mother, and the work contained both classical and rhythmic and improvising elements. Cæcilie has also performed with her mother and Thomas Clausen with a mixture of Opera, Musical and Jazz titled: "Ballads, Blues and Lieder". Cæcilie begun performing as a soloist which, both early on and throughout her career, has seen her collaborating with numerous renowned European and American musicians, bands and orchestras - such as: Musicians Dianne Reeves, Curtis Stigers, John Scofield, Mike Stern, Randy and Michael Brecker. Bassplayers: Ray Brown, Niels Henning Ørsted Pedersen, Lars Danielsson, Heyn van der Geyn, Mads Vinding. Drummers: Billy Hart, Al Foster, Terri Lyne Carrington and Alex Riel. Pianists: Bobo Steenson, Lars Jansson, Carsten Dahl, Joey Calderazzo, Dave Kikoski and many many more. Big Bands & Orchestras: Tolvan BigBand, The Danish Radio Big Band, Klüvers BB, Bohuslen BB and The Umo Big Band. In the spring of 1995 the album "Cæcilie Norby" was released on Blue Note, the legendary Jazz label, with contributions by a number of composers and soloists such as: Randy Brecker, Chick Corea, Don Grolnick, Rick Margitza, Billy Hart and Lars Jansson. The CD was mixed and partly recorded in New York. The Jazzspecial magazine elected "Cæcilie Norby" one of the five best records, and the five digit sales figures achieved so far both in Japan and Denmark are exceptional for a Jazz album. (sales: approx. 60,000 copies) Her second Blue Note release "My Corner Of The Sky" includes drummer Terri Lyne Carrington, bassist Lars Danielsson and the Brecker Brothers. After achieving the sales figure of of 70,000 copies Cæcilie was elected one of the ten most popular jazzsingers throughout the world in 1996. Cæcilie toured for 3 weeks in Japan with her Scandinavian Quartet in December 1996, 3 weeks in USA and 4 months all over Europe during the summer of 1997. Her third album "Queen Of Bad Excuses" was released September 1999. This time she wrote 95% of the music and the lyrics herself; a "selfbiographical fiction" as she calls it. All arrangements, programming and producing were done in cooperation with Lars Danielsson. The album was released in Europe, Australia, Japan and South Africa. It received overwhelming good reviews both from hardcore jazzreviewers to the broad pop-jazz audience. And once again the sales figures exceeded 50,000 copies. Cæcilie's 4th Blue Note album "First Conversation" was a fast selling record. It was created in cooperation with producer Lars Danielsson - who wrote special arrangements for the orchestra, tailored for the improvised sessions recorded in the famous ECM Rainbow Studio in Oslo, Norway. The album features legendary drummer Jon Christensen and pianist Carsten Dahl to mention a few. To date, "First Conversation" has exceeded 40,000 copies sold in Denmark alone and collected a tremendous amount of fine reviews. The Live album "London/Paris" came to life during the Europe Tour in 2003. Two intimate Jazz Clubs became the backdrop for a successful documentation of the hectic touring life of Cæcilie Norby and band. The album gives a dusty atmospheric sound with Ulf Wakenius (Sweden) on guitar and Xavier Desandre Navarre (France) on percussion. "London/Paris" is a bouquet of the best jazz standards and pop classics transformed to new versions in experimental and playful ways. A month after "London/Paris" was released, the American jazz diva, Dianne Reeves, invited Cæcilie Norby to guest appear on 5 songs at a TV concert recorded at the Baltica Jazz Festival in Germany. The duet collaboration was repeated at the Copenhagen Jazz Festival the same summer. "London/Paris" has also received a gold award for 25,000 copies sold in Denmark. The next studio album from Cæcilie was "Slow Fruit" which was released in September 2005. All material on the album is solely written and composed by Cæcilie Norby herself. Lars Danielsson has co-composed 3 of the songs and appeared as both primary pianist and bassist. A significant note about the album is the high degree of intensity derived from collaborations set in a home environment. Prominent musicians, who have influenced Cæcilie's sound both live and on recordings throughout the years, add to the personal and warm atmosphere heard on this album. "Slow Fruit" also introduced a new collaboration opportunity by the American saxophone player and singer Curtis Stigers, who join Cæcilie in duet on the track "Big Time". "Slow Fruit" has truly been a well received album and collected highly appraised reviews. "I Had A Ball" is Cæcilie Norby's latest album. It was released on Copenhagen Records and recorded Live with Klüvers Big Band, featuring her greatest songs and more. The album also include the track "Comes Love" where Cæcilie and the American vocal star Kurt Elling join in a duet. Cæcilie's performances has included work with the Eremitage Sct. Petersburg Symphony Orchestra; concerts in Moscow and at the Warsaw Jazz Festivals with her own group; a sold-out tour in Germany with her own band; working with the Wroclaw Symphony Orchestra (Poland); the Danish Radio Big Band (Denmark) and Malmö Symphony Orchestra (Sweden) among others. Cæcilie joined forces with leading Jazzsinger in Norway; Silje Nergaard and Sweden's Rigmor Gustafsson in an album-recorded project with the Danish Radio Big Band called "Jazz Divas of Scandinavia" released on EMI Records. Touring aside, Cæcilie Norby is working on a project based on the repertoire of music legend Johnny Cash collaborating with renowned Scandinavian musicians. caecilienorby.com copyright © 2010 all rights reserved http://www.caecilienorby.com/bio.php

Joni Mitchell

Joni Mitchell - Both Sides Now - 2000 - Reprise Records

In the liner notes, co-producer Larry Klein describes the album as "a programmatic suite documenting a relationship from initial flirtation through optimistic consummation, metamorphosing into disillusionment, ironic despair, and finally resolving in the philosophical overview of acceptance and the probability of the cycle repeating itself". If anybody can translate this into the Queen's English, A.O.O.F.C would love to hear from you.

Both Sides Now [Reprise, 2000] - My favorite Joni story is that they tried to do a TV special on her and none of her old friends would pitch in. Even if it's a dumb rumor or a damned lie, it's a hell of a metaphor for someone who loves herself so much nobody else need bother, and yet another reason to scoff at her concept song cycle about the rise and fall of an affair. But after decades of pretentious pronouncements on art, jazz, and her own magnificence, this very if briefly great singer-songwriter proves herself a major interpretive singer. Lucky to write two decent songs a decade now, she instead applies her smoked contralto to a knowledgeable selection of superb material by mostly second-echelon Tin Pan Alley craftsmen (and I do mean men). Splitting the difference between pop and jazz like the Chairman himself, she doesn't transform the melodies so much as texture them, and on a few highlights--on "Comes Love" and "You've Changed," on "When love congeals/It soon reveals/The faint aroma of performing seals"--she bores so deep into the words you'd think she'd written them herself back when she had something to say. But no, that's "A Case of You" and "Both Sides Now"--both of which, you can bet the mortgage, she makes sure belong. A- © http://www.robertchristgau.com/ © http://www.robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?name=joni+mitchell

A great album from a lady who doesn't have to prove anything to anybody in regard to musical talent. "Both Sides Now" is HR by A.O.O.F.C. Listen to her "Travelogue", "The Hissing Of Summer Lawns", "For The Roses", "Court And Spark", and "Ladies Of The Canyon" albums for more "pretentious pronouncements on art, jazz, and her own magnificence"

TRACKS / COMPOSERS

1. "You're My Thrill" (Sidney Clare, Jay Gorney) – 3:52
2. "At Last" (Mack Gordon, Harry Warren) – 4:28
3. "Comes Love" (Lew Brown, Sam H. Stept, Charles Tobias) – 4:29
4. "You've Changed" (Bill Carey, Carl Fischer) – 5:00
5. "Answer Me, My Love" (Fred Rauch, Carl Sigman, Gerhard Winkler) – 3:23
6. "A Case of You" (Joni Mitchell) – 5:52
7. "Don't Go to Strangers" (Redd Evans, Arthur Kent, Dave Mann) – 4:10
8. "Sometimes I'm Happy" (Irving Caesar, Clifford Grey, Vincent Youmans) – 3:58
9. "Don't Worry 'Bout Me" (Rube Bloom, Ted Koehler) – 3:49
10. "Stormy Weather" (Harold Arlen, Ted Koehler) – 3:07
11. "I Wish I Were in Love Again" (Lorenz Hart, Richard Rodgers) – 3:36
12. "Both Sides Now" (Joni Mitchell) – 5:45

MUSICIANS

Vocals - Joni Mitchell
Piano - Dave Arch , Herbie Hancock
Drums - Peter Erskine
Bass - Chris Laurence , Chuck Berghofer , Mary Scully , Mike Brittain
Bass, Clarinet - Anthony Pike
Cello - Anthony Pleeth , Dave Daniels , Frank Schaefer , Helen Liebmann , Martin Loveday , Paul Kegg , Tony Lewis
Percussion - Frank Ricotti
Saxophone [Alto] - Jamie Talbot
Saxophone [Soprano], Saxophone [Tenor] - Wayne Shorter
Horns - Hugh Seenan , John Pigneguy , Mike Thompson , Nigel Black , Paul Gardham , Philip Eastop , Richard Watkins
Trombone - Neil Sidwell , Pete Beachill , Peter Davies , Richard Edwards
Trombone [Bass] - David Stewart, Richard Henry
Trumpet - Andy Crowley , Derek Watkins , Gerard Presencer , John Barclay , Mark Isham , Steve Sidwell
Tuba - Owen Slade
Bassoon - Gavin McNaughton , Julie Andrews
Contrabassoon - Richard Skinner
Oboe - John Anderson
Oboe, English Horn [Cor Anglais] - Sue Bohling
Clarinet, Clarinet [Bass] - Iain Dixon
Clarinet - Nicholas Bucknall
Viola - Bill Benham , Bruce White , Catherine Bradshaw , Don McVay, Ivo Van Der Werff , Katie Wilkinson , Peter Lale , Rachel Bolt
Violin - Antonia Fuchs , Ben Cruft , Buguslav Kotecki, Cathy Thompson , Chris Tombling , Dave Woodcock , Dermot Crehan , Everton Nelson , Godfrey Salmon , Jackie Shave , Jim McLeod , Jonathan Strange , Julian Leaper , Kathy Shave, Maciej Rakowski , Matthew Scrivener , Michael McMenemy , Patrick Kiernan , Perry Montague-Mason , Peter Oxer , Rebecca Hirsch , Rita Manning , Roger Garland , Simon Fischer , Vaughn Armon , Warren Zielinski , Wilf Gibson
Concertmaster, Violin - Gavyn Wright
Flute - Andy Findon , Helen Keen
Flute, Clarinet - Jamie Talbot , Stan Sulzman
Flute, Clarinet, Flute [Alto] - Phil Todd
Harp - Skaila Kanga

BIO

When the dust settles, Joni Mitchell may stand as the most important and influential female recording artist of the late 20th century. Uncompromising and iconoclastic, Mitchell confounded expectations at every turn; restlessly innovative, her music evolved from deeply personal folk stylings into pop, jazz, avant-garde, and even world music, presaging the multicultural experimentation of the 1980s and 1990s by over a decade. Fiercely independent, her work steadfastly resisted the whims of both mainstream audiences and the male-dominated recording industry. While Mitchell's records never sold in the same numbers enjoyed by contemporaries like Carole King, Janis Joplin, or Aretha Franklin, none experimented so recklessly with their artistic identities or so bravely explored territory outside of the accepted confines of pop music, resulting in a creative legacy which paved the way for performers ranging from Patti Smith and Chrissie Hynde to Madonna and Courtney Love. Born Roberta Joan Anderson in Fort McLeod, Alberta, Canada, on November 7, 1943, she was stricken with polio at the age of nine; while recovering in a children's hospital, she began her performing career by singing to the other patients. After later teaching herself to play guitar with the aid of a Pete Seeger instruction book, she went off to art college, and became a fixture on the folk music scene around Alberta. After relocating to Toronto, she married folksinger Chuck Mitchell in 1965, and began performing under the name Joni Mitchell. A year later the couple moved to Detroit, MI, but separated soon after; Joni remained in the Motor City, however, and won significant press acclaim for her burgeoning songwriting skills and smoky, distinctive vocals, leading to a string of high-profile performances in New York City. There she became a cause célèbre among the media and other performers; after she signed to Reprise in 1967, David Crosby offered to produce her debut record, a self-titled acoustic effort that appeared the following year. Her songs also found great success with other singers: in 1968, Judy Collins scored a major hit with the Mitchell-penned "Both Sides Now," while Fairport Convention covered "Eastern Rain" and Tom Rush recorded "The Circle Game." Thanks to all of the outside exposure, Mitchell began to earn a strong cult following; her 1969 sophomore effort, Clouds, reached the Top 40, while 1970's Ladies of the Canyon sold even better on the strength of the single "Big Yellow Taxi." It also included her anthemic composition "Woodstock," a major hit for Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. Still, the commercial and critical approval awarded her landmark 1971 record Blue was unprecedented: a luminous, starkly confessional set written primarily during a European vacation, the album firmly established Mitchell as one of pop music's most remarkable and insightful talents. Predictably, she turned away from Blue's incandescent folk with 1972's For the Roses, the first of the many major stylistic turns she would take over the course of her daring career. Backed by rock-jazz performer Tom Scott, Mitchell's music began moving into more pop-oriented territory, a change typified by the single "You Turn Me On (I'm a Radio)," her first significant hit. The follow-up, 1974's classic Court and Spark, was her most commercially successful outing: a sparkling, jazz-accented set, it reached the number two spot on the U.S. album charts and launched three hit singles -- "Help Me," "Free Man in Paris," and "Raised on Robbery." After the 1974 live collection Miles of Aisles, Mitchell emerged in 1975 with The Hissing of Summer Lawns, a bold, almost avant-garde record that housed her increasingly complex songs in experimental, jazz-inspired settings; "The Jungle Line" introduced the rhythms of African Burundi drums, placing her far ahead of the pop world's mid-'80s fascination with world music. 1976's Hejira, recorded with Weather Report bassist Jaco Pastorius, smoothed out the music's more difficult edges while employing minimalist techniques; Mitchell later performed the album's first single, "Coyote," at the Band's Last Waltz concert that Thanksgiving. Her next effort, 1977's two-record set Don Juan's Reckless Daughter, was another ambitious move, a collection of long, largely improvisational pieces recorded with jazz players Larry Carlton and Wayne Shorter, Chaka Khan, and a battery of Latin percussionists. Shortly after the record's release, Mitchell was contacted by the legendary jazz bassist Charles Mingus, who invited her to work with him on a musical interpretation of T.S. Eliot's Four Quartets. Mingus, who was suffering from Lou Gehrig's disease, sketched out a series of melodies to which Mitchell added lyrics; however, Mingus died on January 5, 1979, before the record was completed. After Mitchell finished their collaboration on her own, she recorded the songs under the title Mingus, which was released the summer after the jazz titan's passing. Following her second live collection, 1980's Shadows and Light, Mitchell returned to pop territory for 1982's Wild Things Run Fast; the first single, a cover of the Elvis Presley hit "(You're So Square) Baby I Don't Care," became her first chart single in eight years. Shortly after the album's release, she married bassist/sound engineer Larry Klein, who became a frequent collaborator on much of her subsequent material, including 1985's synth-driven Dog Eat Dog, co-produced by Thomas Dolby. Mitchell's move into electronics continued with 1988's Chalk Mark in a Rain Storm, featuring guests Peter Gabriel, Willie Nelson, Tom Petty, and Billy Idol. Mitchell returned to her roots with 1991's Night Ride Home, a spare, stripped-down collection spotlighting little more than her voice and acoustic guitar. Prior to recording 1994's Turbulent Indigo, she and Klein separated, although he still co-produced the record, which was her most acclaimed work in years. In 1996, she compiled a pair of anthologies, Hits and Misses, which collected her chart successes as well as underappreciated favorites. A new studio album, Taming the Tiger, followed in 1998. Both Sides Now, a collection of standards, followed in early 2000. Two years later, Mitchell resurfaced with the double-disc release Travelogue. She announced in October 2002 that this would be her last album ever, for she'd grown tired of the industry. She told W magazine that she intended to retire. She also claimed she would never sign another corporate label deal and in Rolling Stone blasted the recording industry for being "a cesspool." By the time Travelogue appeared a month later, Mitchell had simmered down and her plans to call it quits had been axed. Numerous compilations and remasters appeared between 2002 and 2006, culminating in the release of the independent Shine in 2007. © Jason Ankeny © 2010 Rovi Corporation. All Rights Reserved http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:3ifexqe5ldte~T1

Nnenna Freelon

Nnenna Freelon - Tales of Wonder: Celebrating Stevie Wonder - 2002 - Concord Records

Following her double Grammy-nominated CD entitled Soulcall, vocalist Nnenna Freelon has delivered a stunning tribute to master musician Stevie Wonder with Tales of Wonder: Celebrating Stevie Wonder. In addition to being the first vocal CD ever done as a tribute to the legendary Wonder, the recording boasts several guest musicians accompanying her core ensemble. Freelon interprets such well-known Wonder classics as "Overjoyed," "My Cherie Amour," and "Another Star" in a voice that is sensual and personable, yet appealing and expressive. This collection of well-chosen pop standards allows Freelon more freedom to express the jazzier side of her talent than the blues and R&B flavors she sang on Soulcall due to the compositional integrity of Stevie Wonder's songs. These particular songs allow for the improvisational aspects of jazz while balancing their pop essence. By adding the strong work of bassist Gerald Veasley and guitarist Chuck Loeb alongside her working ensemble, her special imprint of languorous tempo that shows off her great time and phrasing is even more appealing. Tales of Wonder: Celebrating Stevie Wonder is sure to garner more support for Nnenna Freelon as a vocalist who can handle more than one side of the musical spectrum. © Paula Edelstein © 2010 Rovi Corporation. All Rights Reserved http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:ajftxql0ldje

"Tales of Wonder" is reminiscent of the late Ella Fitzgerald's 'songbook' albums, and her homage to Stevie Wonder maintains this great tradition. Nnenna is still a very underrated interpreter in the vocal jazz world. She has a beautifully controlled voice. Her vocal range is wide, and she sings twelve great Stevie Wonder songs in a clear, warm voice tinged with gospel, blues, and jazz. One of Nnenna's idols is Nancy Wilson, and like Nancy, Nnenna sings with genuine soul. Nnenna has said that "Jazz needs to open up a little more. We've gotten too comfortable with being so hip. The charge on jazz artists is to re-interpret our environment, to open up the possibilities. Now, I grew up on the standards and Ella and Sarah, but I also love the music of my generation: the ladies of Labelle, Earth, Wind & Fire, Minnie Riperton, Chaka Khan. I don't look at just one genre when I select the songs I sing. It has a lot to do with my own values and morals, the songs I choose to sing."Tales of Wonder" is a superb album - outstanding singing, wonderful instrumentation, especially from bassist Gerald Veasley and guitarist Chuck Loeb, and very, very enjoyable. The album is VHR by A.O.O.F.C. You will listen to this album time and time again. Buy Nnenna's great "Soulcall" album

TRACKS / COMPOSERS

01 Overjoyed - Stevie Wonder (4:46)
02 Creepin' - Stevie Wonder (5:02)
03 Lately - Marvin Sease/Stevie Wonder (5:44)
04 Superstition - Stevie Wonder (5:29)
05 The Tears of a Clown - Henry Cosby/Smokey Robinson/Stevie Wonder (5:30)
06 Black Orchid - Cal Tjader/Stevie Wonder/Wright, Lowrene Yvonne (4:57)
07 My Cherie Amour - Henry Cosby/Sylvia Moy/Stevie Wonder (3:49)
08 Bird of Beauty - Stevie Wonder (4:37)
09 All in Love is Fair - Stevie Wonder (6:51)
10 Send One Your Love - Stevie Wonder (5:03)
11 Another Star - Stevie Wonder (3:45)
12 Until You Come Back to Me - Morris Broadnax/Paul, Claurence/Stevie Wonder (5:25)

MUSICIANS

Nnenna Freelon: vocals
Chuck Loeb: electric guitar, acoustic guitar
Gerald Veasley: electric bass, acoustic bass
Brandon McCune: piano, Hammond B-3 organ, Fender Rhodes piano
Woody Williams: drums
Dave Samuels: vibraphone, marimba
Bashiri Johnson: percussion
Gerry Niewood: flute, alto flute, soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone
Ronnie Buttacavoli: trumpet
Andy Stein, Jason Crosby: violin
Enrico Granafei: harmonica

BIO

Nnenna Chinyere Freelon is a world-renowned jazz vocalist; she has recorded extensively and been nominated for numerous Grammy Awards. While this doesn't necessarily set her apart from other more prolific female jazz singers, there is one aspect of her career that does: she didn't begin recording until she was in her late thirties. She was born in Cambridge, MA, in 1954 as Nnenna Chinyere Pierce. She began singing at an early age in church, but didn't pursue music as a career until decades later. She graduated from Simmons College, with a degree in health care administration. She worked for a time in in social services for Durham, NC's hospital corporation. In 1979, she married Philip Freelon, an architect. The couple had three children before she began to consider a career in music. She studied with Yusef Lateef, developing her singing through listening to horn players. Her big break came in 1990 while attending the Southern Arts Federation's jazz meeting, and sitting in with Ellis Marsalis. Marsalis was doing A&R for Columbia Records' Dr. George Butler at the time, and asked the singer for a tape, which he passed on to Butler, who signed her. Her self-titled debut recording was released in 1992 and attracted mixed reviews due to Freelon's heavy stylistic debt to Sarah Vaughan — though this was not entirely the vocalist's fault but her producer's. Her second album, a ballad-heavy collection entitled Heritage, was released in 1993, and was received by critics and fans alike as a jewel. Freelon truly established her own voice and style with her 1994 outing, Listen. it was her final recording for Columbia. In 1995 she signed to Concord (where she was granted far more artistic control over her recordings). She released her first album for the label, Shaking Free, in 1996; for it she received her first Grammy nomination for Best Jazz Vocal Performance. Maiden Voyage, released in 1998, was also nominated for Grammy for Best Jazz Vocal Performance; it displayed her interest in the role of women in music and society as expressed through her sometimes radical but always elegant interpretations of pop and folk songs as well as jazz standards. In 2000, Freelon branched out. She made her acting debut in the feature film What Women Want and released her first self-produced set, Soulcall. The album garnered her two Grammy nominations: one for Best Jazz Vocal Album and another for Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying a Vocal for her interpretation of the standard "Button Up Your Overcoat." In 2002 she released Tales of Wonder: Celebrating Stevie Wonder, a tribute recording of songs written by, and associated with, the Motown great, and as a reward, received another Grammy nomination for Best Jazz Vocal Album. She recorded her first live album in 2005, and followed it with her radical Blueprint of a Lady: Sketches of Billie Holiday in 2006; this album is wildly refreshing for the way in which Freelon took great liberties with songs associated with Holiday, reinterpreting them in contemporary settings and in her own bold image. And while some jazz critics took notable exception to messing with Lady Day, Freelon was nonetheless honored by the RIAA with another Grammy nomination for Best Jazz Vocal Album. In 2008, she appeared as the only vocalist on the Monterey Jazz Festival: 50th Anniversary All-Stars album, fronting a band that starred Benny Green, James Moody, Terence Blanchard, Kendrick Scott, and Derrick Hodge. In 2010, Ms. Freelon released her seventh Concord album, Homefree. © Thom Jurek © 2010 Rovi Corporation. All Rights Reserved http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:09foxq95ldae~T1

Muriel Zoe

Muriel Zoe - Neon Blue - 2005 - ACT

“It was always going to be a challenge to achieve the right balance between original material and covers”, she writes about the process of preparing the album. The result speaks for itself. For all the diversity of the material, from her own songs to jazz standards, Muriel Zoe has achieved a coherent, homogeneous and authentic recording, clearly demonstrating her personality. Her way of stressing the characteristics of each piece, her assured feel for phrasing and sonic palette, and not least her warm voice make a unique stamp on Neon Blue. There are also standards on the album. But this time the mix is much more colourful. For example you can find Cole Porter’s ‘It’s Alright With Me” as a gorgeous opener alongside two Beatles songs, country hit ‘Ring Of Fire’ by Johnny Cash, or Michael v. Dyke’s ‘Everybody Wants To Be Alone Sometimes’, realised in conjunction with the well-known producer and engineer BlackPete. And for all you Steely Dan fans, she does a great dreamy, almost ethereal jazzy version of Becker & Fagen's classic "Rikki Don't Lose That Number." [Parts of this synopsis are taken from http://reader.feedshow.com/show_items-feed=4d1bf462f1be9db81e37ca2797b28353?page=0 © FeedShow - Online RSS Feeds Reader ]

Check out her "Red And Blue" album.

TRACKS

1.It's Alright With Me
2.Rikki Don't Lose That Number
3.Have A Good Time
4.Neon Blue
5.Everybody Wants To Be Alone Sometimes
6.I Should Have Known Better
7.Body And Soul
8.It Must Be Me
9.Ring Of Fire
10.Blank Mind
11.Future Song
12.A Hard Day's Night
13.Lullaby

MUSICIANS

Muriel Zoe - vocals, acoustic guitar
Matthias Pogoda - acoustic and electric guitars, wurlitzer
Michael Leuschner - trumpet, fluegelhorn
Johannes Huth - bass
Michael Verhovec - drums, percussion

ABOUT MURIEL ZOE

A very talented jazz singer, Muriel Zoe was born in 1969 in Ludwigshafen. Part of her schooling was at an English boarding school in South India. Back in Germany, she began to play guitar at age 12 and wrote her first songs with English lyrics at 15. In 1988 she began to train as painter and engraver at the art school in Nurtingen in the Southern region of Baden-Wurttemberg and continued her education from 1990 at the technical university for design in Hamburg. Since 1994 she has exhibited in both group and solo shows. In 1990 she began studies in popular music at the Hamburg music conservatoire in the area of rock music and composition. 1992 saw her form her first band working on a repertoire of jazz standards. A further development was the foundation in 1995 of the band Zoe and the Zebras, where she was the "surprise star" of the "Jazz In Hamburg" festival according to the Hamburger Morgenpost. Together with her Hamburg musical friends Michael Leuschner (tp), Matthias Pogoda (g), Johannes Huth (b) and Michael Verhovec (dr) Muriel Zoe recorded her debut album: "Red And Blue," which is a very individual, most entertaining and without doubt a supreme analysis by a young singer of the classics of the jazz songbook. Muriel Zoe is today a freelance musician and painter as well as a teacher of painting and graphic art in Hamburg.

Lorraine Feather

Lorraine Feather - Such Sweet Thunder, (Music Of The Duke Ellington Orchestra) - 2004 - Sanctuary

This is a stunning example of contemporary jazz vocals. The arrangements are superb, and the list of contributing musicians is mind blowing. The hugely talented Lorraine Feather has produced a work of outstanding originality here, covering some of The Duke's lesser known compositions and co-compositions. Lorraine has put her own lyrics to these tunes, which in itself is no mean feat. You should buy this album for your jazz collection. It is an exceptional recording. If you haven't heard Lorraine Feather before, give her 2003 CD, "Café Society" a listen.

TRACKS / COMPOSERS

RHYTHM, GO ‘WAY - (based on “Such Sweet Thunder,” from The Shakesperean Suite by Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn) Lyrics by Lorraine Feather
THE 101 - (based on “Suburbanite” by Duke Ellington) Lyrics by Lorraine Feather
CAN I CALL YOU SUGAR - (based on “Sugar Rum Cherry,” from The Nutcracker Suite by Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn) Lyrics by Lorraine Feather
IMAGINARY GUY - (Based on “Dancers In Love,” from The Perfume Suite by Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn) Lyrics by Lorraine Feather
SEPTEMBER RAIN - (Based on “Chelsea Bridge” by Billy Strayhorn) Lyrics by Lorraine Feather
TENACITY - (based on “Rexatious” by Rex Stewart) Lyrics by Lorraine Feather
BACKWATER TOWN - (based on “Suburban Beauty” by Duke Ellington) Lyrics by Lorraine Feather
A PEACEFUL KINGDOM - (based on “On a Turquoise Cloud” by Duke Ellington and Lawrence Brown) Lyrics, Lorraine Feather
LOVELY CREATURES - (based on “Night Creature: Second Movement” by Duke Ellington) Lyrics by Lorraine Feather
ANTARCTICA - (based on “The Ricitic” by Duke Ellington) Lyrics by Lorraine Feather
MIGHTY LIKE THE BLUES - Music & Lyrics by Leonard Feather

MUSICIANS

Lorraine Feather - Vocals, Background Vocals
Shelby Flint , Morgan Ames , Randy Crenshaw , Carmen Twillie - Background Vocals
Terri Lyne Carrington , Chuck Berghofer , Gregg Field - Drums
Jay Mason , Brian Scanlon , Bill Liston - Reeds
Glenn Berger , Jeff Driskill - Reeds, Tenor Saxophone
Terry Harrington - Tenor Saxophone
Andy Martin , Charlie Morillas , Bruce Otto - Trombone
Donald Clarke , Willie Murillo, Wayne Bergeron , Jeff Bunnell , Gary Grant - Trumpet
Peter Erskine - Horn
Mike Lang , Shelly Berg - Piano
Russell Ferrante - Bass, Piano
Dave Carpenter - Bass
Grant Geissman - Guitar

REVIEWS

It's a shame that Lorraine Feather wasn't able to contribute lyrics to the music of Duke Ellington prior to his death in 1974, as she's a natural storyteller. Ellington composed or co-wrote most of the 11 songs on this CD, though Feather chose lesser-known and especially challenging material to embellish with her gifts. She is also a superb singer who gets the most out of every track, joined by a large cast of talented musicians who sound as if they've played every chart together night after night for years. It's hard to beat her hilarious "Imaginary Guy" (based upon "Dancers in Love"), a terrific ditty about a girl so fed up with the opposite sex that she dreamed up the ideal man in her mind. The obscure bossa nova "The Ricitic," written by Ellington for his small group session with Coleman Hawkins, is transformed to the sidesplitting "Antarctica" (sample lyrics: "I cried all night/That's half a year"), a song that is guaranteed to tickle the funny bone of the sourest curmudgeon. The dark-tinged "Lovely Creatures" (based upon the second movement to "Night Creature") is not without its humorous moments ("You've got looks and bucks and yet these blues/Seem to stick to you like gum to shoes"). She wrote the words to "September Rain" (adapted from Billy Strayhorn's gorgeous ballad "Chelsea Bridge") a number of years earlier and recorded it with her group In Full Swing. This chart, with the rhythm section arranged by pianist Mike Lang and the vocal group by Morgan Ames, is every bit as lush as the original instrumental, showcasing Feather's upper range and Terry Harrington's mellow tenor sax. "The 101" is a hard-charging reworking of "Suburbanite" that tells of a dash down a highway to catch up with her lover. The finale, "Mighty Like the Blues," features words and music by the late Leonard Feather, Lorraine's father. Ellington recorded it in 1938 and again in 1960, though her version, jointly arranged by Russell Ferrante and Bill Elliott, will likely eclipse the maestro's own recordings. © Ken Dryden, All Music Guide

Aside from the great mixing & mastering job, (Which I'll assume Lorraine held court over), I give this CD project a resounding.........WOW!! Lorraine's vocal delivery & vibrato are something other pop/jazz singers should reckon with. She uses both her vibrato and the words of her renditions as a means to an end.........Namely, to give life, meaning, and interpretation to her music. To be succinct, in my eyes, she succeeds. Lorraine excels in her up-tempo rhythms, singing multiple notes & complex phrases, as well as sustained notes. She's a singer's singer. As far as her big band is concerned, the band is crisp, tight, dynamic & consummate in its prowess. As my readers know, I too have a fine big band, so I'd be remiss if I didn't pay a slight editorial comment to the band's artistic ability. You'll love this disc, the'gem' of the project being her vocal rendition of Ellington's ''September Rain.' '© George W. Carroll/The Musicians' Ombudsman, www.ejazznews.com

BIO

Lorraine Feather, a native of New York City who grew up in Los Angeles, is the daughter of jazz critic Leonard Feather and his wife, Jane (a professional singer), while jazz legend Billie Holiday was her godmother. Exposed to a variety of music in her household, such a career almost seemed to be her destiny, though her parents neither pushed nor discouraged her. After finishing school, Feather returned to Manhattan to pursue acting, doing a bit of singing to pay the bills, including cabaret. She was in the Broadway and touring casts of Jesus Christ Superstar and later sang backup for Grand Funk Railroad and Petula Clark. Open to many musical interests, Feather began focusing on jazz in the late '70s, making her debut on an album by pianist Joanne Grauer and recording her first jazz LP for Concord (Sweet Lorraine) in 1978. In the 1990s, Feather became a first-rate jazz singer as a member of the vocal group Full Swing, developing her expressive contralto to capture the essence of every song. She began regularly contributing lyrics to their repertoire, but her writing career blossomed when she began recording on her own. Her ability to write lyrics to challenging, often obscure instrumentals by Fats Waller and Duke Ellington, while also collaborating with several excellent, currently active songwriters, has impressed many jazz critics. Humor is especially her strong suit ("Imaginary Guy," "You're Outa Here," "Antarctica," and "Indiana Lana"), though her ballads, swing vehicles, and pop songs also merit strong praise. Feather has also written extensively for television (she has earned seven Emmy nominations) and movie soundtracks, including The Jungle Book 2 and Julie Andrews' vocal comeback in The Princess Diaries 2. Opera star Jessye Norman performed one of her songs ("Faster, Higher, Stronger") at the opening of the 1996 Olympics. © Ken Dryden, All Music Guide

MORE ABOUT THE ARTIST (Wikipedia)

Lorraine Feather is a lyricist/songwriter. She was born in Manhattan. Her father was jazz writer Leonard Feather; her mother Jane was a former big band singer and ex-roommate of Peggy Lee. Feather’s godmother was Billie Holiday. Her husband is Tony Morales, formerly a drummer for artists such as The Rippingtons, David Benoit and Rickie Lee Jones. Morales changed careers in the late 1990s, turning to Internet management. He led Silicon Graphics’ web team for ten years. The couple moved from Los Angeles to Half Moon Bay, CA at the beginning of this period. In 2007 they relocated to the San Juan Islands in Washington State. Lorraine Feather began working in television as a lyricist in 1992 and has received seven Emmy nominations. Her lyrics for children include Disney’s Dinosaurs series on ABC and the MGM films Babes In Toyland and An All Dogs Christmas; Feather and composer Mark Watters wrote the themes for MGM’s TV shows All Dogs Go To Heaven and The Lionhearts; they also created the piece “Faster, Higher, Stronger” for Jessye Norman to sing in the opening ceremonies of the 1996 Olympics. Feather and composer Larry Grossman wrote the song that Julie Andrews performed in The Princess Diaries 2. Feather has also created lyrics for Disney’s feature film The Jungle Book 2 (with Australian jazz musician Paul Grabowsky), and for Pooh’s Heffalump Halloween, the PBS series Make Way for Noddy, and the Candy Land and My Little Pony films for Hasbro Toys. Feather’s work has been heard on numerous records, in films and on television. Her songs have been covered extensively by artists such as Phyllis Hyman, Kenny Rankin, Patti Austin, Diane Schuur and Cleo Laine. Many of her own solo CDs have featured contemporary lyrics to formerly instrumental pieces written by Duke Ellington, Fats Waller and other pre-bop composers. Feather’s recordings have received glowing reviews in every major jazz magazine. Down Beat has called her work “deliciously savvy”; Jazz Times referred to her as “a lyrical Dorothy Parker” and her lyrical reinventions as “pure genius.” In 2005, Lorraine Feather began working as lyricist on Canum Entertainment’s theatrical project The Thief, based on the Oscar-nominated Russian film and featuring the music of Russian composer Vladimir Shainskiy; The Thief debuted at LA’s El Portal Theatre in the summer of 2007. Soon after, she started work on Canum’s next musical, Pest Control, with co-lyricist Scott de Turk. She was also commissioned to write lyrics for a musical production of Tom Wolfe’s The Bonfire of the Vanities (music by New York neo-classical composer Stefania de Kenessey). American Opera Projects has presented excerpts from this work, and it was featured at the annual Derriere Guard concert in New York in October of 2007, with Tom Wolfe as keynote speaker.

Renee Olstead

Renee Olstead - Renee Olstead - 2004 - Warner Bros. Records

Renee Olstead has a long way to go before she will be regarded as one of the great jazz blues singers, but she is surely halfway there with this album. She has shades of Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, and Maria Muldaur in her beautiful bluesy jazz voice.This is a very mature jazz album recorded, incredibly when Renee was only fourteen. Her ability to sing some of these great American standards cannot be faulted, and her voice can only get better. A very good album from a very promising young singer. Buy her 2006 album, "Skylark."

TRACKS

"Summertime" (Gershwin, Gershwin, Heyward)
"Taking a Chance on Love" (Duke, Fetter, Latouche)
"Is You Is or Is You Ain't My Baby" (Austin, Jordan)
"Someone to Watch Over Me" (Gershwin, Gershwin) - [(featuring Chris Botti)
"Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" (Greenfield, Sedaka) - (featuring Peter Cincotti)
"A Love That Will Last" (Foster, Thompson)
"Meet Me, Midnight" (Manilow, Sussman)
"Sunday Kind of Love" (Belle, Nye, Prima, Rhodes) - (featuring Chris Botti)
"On a Slow Boat to China" (Loesser) - (featuring Carol Welsman)
"What a Diff'rence a Day Makes" (Adams, Grever)
"Midnight at the Oasis" (Nichtern)
"Sentimental Journey" (Brown, Green, Homer)

MUSICIANS

Renee Olstead - vocals
Carol Welsman - vocals
Peter Cincotti - piano, vocals
Alan Broadbent - piano
Billy Childs Trio - piano
Chris Dawson - piano
Chris Botti - trumpet
Warren Luening - trumpet
Rick Baptist - trumpet
Dean Parks - acoustic guitar, guitar
Dennis Budimir - guitar
David Tull - drums
Jeff Hamilton - drums
Vinnie Colaiuta - drums
Joe LaBarbera - drums
Brian Bromberg - bass instrument
John Clayton - bass
Don Shelton - alto saxophone, tenor saxophone

REVIEWS

Back in 2002, producer David Foster oversaw the debut disc of a young jazz/pop singer named Michael Bublé. With his handsome looks and Sinatra-like voice, Bublé quickly saw his star begin to rise and the success of his disc kicked off a mini-revival of old standards and big band singers. Striking while the iron was hot, Foster fed the flame by introducing an even younger female counterpart to Bublé. Reneé Olstead was a 14-year-old actress mostly known for her co-starring role in the CBS television series Still Standing, but while acting has been her day job since childhood, Olstead has also dabbled in music. Unlike Bublé, who was studying classic songs at a young age with his grandfather, Olstead first latched onto traditional country music and at the age of ten and released Stone Country, which found her singing mediocre tunes in a hiccuped, down-home accent. Four years and a 180-degree turn later, Olstead discovers her inner ingénue with the assistance of Svengali Foster and released her major label debut of pop and jazz standards. The results have the same lovely, glossy sheen that Foster tweaked to perfection on Natalie Cole's Unforgettable album, and Olstead's newfound voice is a vast improvement from her faux twang days. With a voice that is reminiscent of Nicole Kidman's singing debut in Moulin Rouge, Olstead sounds more like a young, bubbly starlet than a newly discovered diva. There is no question that she has a pretty voice and is more than capable of performing undemanding standards like "Taking a Chance on Love," however, her voice lacks the depth and experience truly needed to tackle more difficult song like "Summertime" or "Sunday Kind of Love." In taking on Barry Manilow's "Meet Me, Midnight" she dives in with gusto but ends up barely treading water mid-song with a scat section that sounds uncomfortable and forced. Age is certainly a factor in making these songs sound convincing and, for the most part, Foster smartly chose songs that do not reach too far beyond her young years. This helps to make a song like "Someone to Watch Over Me" sound like a sweet, teenage fairy tale. On the other hand, the sensuality of Maria Muldaur's "Midnight at the Oasis" is far too mature for her to grasp at this time. She does much better on the Norah Jones-styled original "A Love That Lasts" as the song's quiet demeanor compliments Olstead's vocals, making her sound comfortable and natural. It is going to take more time and experience for her to sound as convincing on songs like "Is You Is or Is You Ain't My Baby," but Foster has given her a great crash course and that helps to make her debut disc a pleasant listen. Reneé Olstead has a solid foundation from which to work and if she can continue building up from there, she just might have to set aside her acting career for a while. © Aaron Latham, http://www.allmusic.com
After a hesitant start,emerging Jazz singer Renee Olstead finally lets rip on knockabout standard Summertime.From then on it’s cruise control on a sentimental journey of a superbly arranged covers album.As much as she may not like it,she’s probably going to join the ranks of Katie Melua in terms of branding.That’s were comparisons end,as her range is much wider and more profound.Vocally she’s a lightweight,but don’t dismiss her,as she can cut it with the likes of Clare Teal,and show Amy Winehouse the door.Pristine and clear as the driven snow:like a rollercoaster Olstead can rise and fall in an instant.Her male counterpart Michael Buble’s similar efforts on This Time sounds the poor relation in every way.Here the chemistry between artist and song is very explosive-in the nicest possible way of course.She can let rip and tone it down like a past master-check her mesmerising duet with singer-songwriter Peter Cincotti on Neil Sedaka’s Breaking Up Is Hard To Do.Elsewhere she flirts with the lyrics and the listener e.g A Love That Will Last as she do-wops her heart away.Maria Muldaur’s hit Midnight At The Oasis is done as straight cover-spot the difference?Given the right exposure(BBC Radio 2) this sexy young lady could be a huge star. The singing is as passionate as her red hair-so look out Olstead’s gonna grab you quite soon. © Elly Roberts, www.allgigs.co.uk
In a bold move that even more experienced singers might think twice about, Renee Olstead opens her self-titled major-label debut with a stark, a cappella verse of Gershwin's melancholy classic "Summertime." Olstead sings with confidence and swings with authority on this set of standards, an astonishing accomplishment for a young lady, who, at the time of this recording, was only 14 years old. Very little indicates that this album is the work of a teenager, and certain vocal touches even bring to mind the bold vocal style of K.D. Lang. The record features big-band arrangements with lush strings, punchy horns, and even a quasi-Swingle Singers backdrop on "On a Slow Boat to China." Chris Botti provides sexy trumpet obbligato on two numbers, and Peter Cincotti joins Olstead on a stellar duet of Neil Sedaka's "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do," rounding out a remarkable first outing by a notable talent. Copyright 1997-2008 Buy.com Inc., All rights reserved





BIO (Wikipedia)

Rebecca Renee Olstead (born June 18, 1989) is an American actress and singer. Olstead was born in Houston, Texas, to Christopher Eric Olstead and Rebecca Lynn Jeffries. As a child actress, she made films and commercials from age eight onwards. From 2002 to 2006, she appeared in the TV sitcom Still Standing as middle sister Lauren Miller. She also had a small part in the 2004 film 13 Going on 30. In 2004, Olstead released an eponymous album of jazz songs and pop standards for Warner Bros. Records to good reviews; since her previous releases had limited distribution, this album was considered her true debut. She subsequently performed in Berlin during the Live 8 concert on July 2, 2005. Additionally, she recorded with trumpeter Chris Botti on his 2005 album To Love Again: The Duets and appears on the 2006 DVD Chris Botti Live with Orchestra and Special Guests. Her singing style and talent has already been compared with such great jazz vocalists as Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan. Reportedly her musical talent was discovered by composer David Foster, who produced her 2004 album. She later also performed with Foster on the Oprah Winfrey Show. she has also released a Christmas song called "Christmas In Love". A followup album entitled Skylark, also produced by Foster, was originally announced for release in 2005, but it has subsequently been pushed back several times, with release dates in the summer of 2006 and early 2007 being mentioned on online retailers such as Amazon.com. It is currently slated for a spring 2008 release.