Dorian Devins – Two New Releases

New York centered jazz singer and lyricist Dorian Devins first rocked my sensitive Southern Consciousness in 2013 with the release of The Procrastinator (Rain1 Jazz). Devins marked a return to that jazz step-child, vocalese: the application of lyrics to well-known wordless jazz compositions. The recording was a cornerstone of that year. Devins played a very large part on The Lou Rainone Quintet +1’s Skydance singing two of her compositions (Rain1jazz, 2015). Here on the fulcrum between then and now, Devins releases CD and EP, Imaginary Release and City Stories, back to back, much to our delight. Dorian Devins has a genuine knack for intelligent and thoughtful programming for her projects. The Procrastinator focused intensely on vocalese, others and her own. While bringing a remnant of vocalese to Imaginary Release, Devins expands her creative reach to include some classical hybridization and a nod to the age of Classic Rock. A cheeky allusion to the fact that this release will be available only in a digital format, Imaginary Release shows both creative and performance growth on the part of Devins. The singer adapts two Eric Satie melodies for the medium tempo “Lament for the Moon” and the Eastern-slanted “Satie-ated,” both with the harmonic help of husband/pianist Lou Raineone. Devins extends this Eastern motif into Traffic’s “Hidden Treasures.” She does a straight vocalese on the Ellington/Lee classic, “I’m Gonna Go Fishin'” where her performance is tart, precise, and swinging. Devins’ phrasing presently has no peer. The singer penned words for Wayne Shorter‘s “Conundrum,” making a slick Latin piece punctuated by Rainone’s fine piano interludes. Her straight jazz here is formidable. Leonard Bernstein‘s “Some Other Time” is delicately arranged by Rainone and sung by Devins, displaying her potent alto voice. Benny Goodman‘s “Lullaby in Rhythm” is freshened up considerably, and features Richie Vitale‘s sharp trumpet playing and Tom Christensen‘s woody reeds. The surprise...

Till Bronner – The Good Life

The Good Life marks the trumpeter and vocalist’s return to straight-ahead jazz after a self-titled outing that paid homage to CTI in 2012, and 2014’s Movie Album, which treated film themes as contemporary jazz numbers. This 13-song set contains 11 standards and two originals. Brönnersurrounded himself with a crack band of sidemen — pianist Larry Goldings, guitarist Anthony Wilson, bassist John Clayton, and drummer Jeff Hamilton — at the legendary Ocean Way studio in Los Angeles with Dutch producer Ruud Jacobs. The vibe throughout is airy, thoughtful, and relaxed (the album’s subtitle is “Music for Peaceful Moments”); the charts are direct but not lightweight. The opener is a reading of Sasha Distel‘s and Jack Reardon‘s title track that reveals his gentle, warm horn in the melody atop a lithe, brushed drum kit groove accentuated by Clayton‘s walking bassline, liquid fills from Wilson, and Goldings‘ intimate accents. In his most authoritative vocal performances on record, Brönner still directly references Chet Baker‘s singing, but the phrasing nuances of Michael Franks and Bob Dorough are reflected in his delivery of the breezy yet swinging renditions of “Come Dance with Me,” the bossa-tinged interpretation of Irving Berlin‘s “Change Partners,” and the straight-up fingerpopping “I May Be Wrong”– with a choice solo by Wilson. On his own “O Que Resta” (an instrumental) Brönner frames his own lyrical playing in the long shadow cast by Miles Davis during his Gil Evans period. Goldings‘ break is close, humid, and gorgeous. “I’ll Be Seeing You” is an iconic Billie Holiday number. Brönner even sings until the midway point — long after the band establishes a lithe, loping groove, and he delivers a fine flügelhorn solo. When he begins to vocalize, the focus has shifted and it’s a clever addendum. More ambitious is the read of “In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning,” inseparably associated with Frank...

Sara Gazarek & Josh Nelson – Dream In The Blue

Since 2002, vocalist Sara Gazarek and pianist Josh Nelson have nurtured an uncommonly strong musical bond. It’s no mere happenstance that Nelson played as a band member on all four of Gazarek’s albums, and she, in turn, sang on two of Nelson’s own recording projects. But over the past 18 months, this Los Angeles-based pair has taken their collaboration to a new level, touring extensively as a duo and developing a diverse repertoire that showcases their combined artistic maturation. Gazarek and Nelson recorded their new album Dream in the Blue (funded exclusively through the crowd-sourcing website pledgemusic.com) as a tribute to their extraordinary partnership. “I remember feeling so incredibly comfortable with Josh that I held on tight and never looked back,” says Gazarek, recalling their very first gig in LA. “We’ve spent the last decade and more writing together, arranging, recording, making silly videos; essentially growing up together, personally and musically.” Nelson, in addition to citing his close rapport with Gazarek, sees Dream in the Blue as “a nice snapshot of our musical tastes in general — decidedly welcoming and accessible for a wide variety of audiences.” The intimate qualities of Dream in the Blue largely derive from the duo’s earnest reflection on their individual experiences and confront both light and dark aspects of the human condition. “I realized the fragility of the gift of love,” Gazarek says of recent life changes, “and the importance of vulnerability and gratitude in our most precious relationships. The songs took on a searching heaviness that I hadn’t explored before.” Nelson similarly identifies a shift in approach that situates their work into a more introspective space: “I feel like I came back to my traditional jazz roots on this album. My previous records have been more modern and theme oriented. I also hear a strong ‘West Coast’ sound on this album, a forward-thinking...

Cheryl Fisher w/John Toomey

For her sixth CD, Canadian vocalist Cheryl Fisher has recorded an album unique in both its repertoire and her approach. Purposefully chosen to be on the quieter side, Fisher puts a personal stamp on these beautiful, rarely heard songs, applying her musicianship and gift for vocal interpretation in celebration of love, or the mourning of love lost. Although they come from the era of the Great American Songbook, Fisher has given them a modern jazz treatment with the brilliant accompaniment of pianist/arranger John Toomey, the singular Portland guitarist John Stowell, the bass & drum team of Jeff Johnson & John Bishop, and acclaimed woodwind artist Eric Allison. “Concept albums aren’t what I usually do, but sometimes you just want to sit by the fireplace, have a glass of wine, put on an album and let it play right through, letting its mellow mood merge with your...

House of David By Lea Delaria

Ghostlight Records presents the innovative new album from Lea DeLaria, House of David: delaria + bowie = jazz, which boldly reexamines the work of music icon David Bowie. DeLaria is the television, stage and music star currently best known as “Carrie ‘Big Boo’ Black” in the hit Netflix series “Orange is the New Black.” The first major jazz reworking on Bowie’s beloved catalog, the album features tracks such as a smooth bossa nova interpretation of “Golden Years,” a trenchant “Life On Mars” and a roof-raising gospel take on “Modern Love.” “Bowie is not only a god of rock and arbitrator of style, but he’s THE defining singer songwriter of the latter part of the 20th century,” according to Lea. “From ‘Suffragette City’ to Labyrinth through Ziggy Stardust and The Hunger, his bold career choices and mind blowing artistic technique flies in the face of convention. He is quite simply a legend. David’s music lends itself perfectly to the language of Jazz. I hope he sees this album as the tribute to his genius that I mean it to be. LONG LIVE DAVID BOWIE.” Lea DeLaria boasts a  multi-faceted career as a comedian, actress and jazz musician. She holds the distinction of being the first openly gay comic on television in America which led to countless television and film roles portraying Police Lieutenants, PE Teachers and the Lesbian who inappropriately hits on straight women.  Selected TV credits include “Awkward,” “Clarence,” “Californication,” “The Oblongs,” “One Live to Live,” “Law and Order: SVU,” “Will and Grace,” “Friends” and “Matlock.”  Selected film credits include: The First Wives Club, Dear Dumb Diary and Edge of Seventeen. She’s received Obie and Theater World Awards, and a Drama Desk nomination for her portrayal as ‘Hildy’ in the Public Theatre’s revival of On The Town, an Ovation nomination for The Boys From Syracuse, and has played both...

The Royal Bopster Project

The Royal Bopsters Project is a multi-generational vocal summit on which the talents of Amy London (soprano), Darmon Meader (tenor), Holli Ross (alto) and Dylan Pramuk (bass), unite to pay tribute to the art of setting lyrics to melodies originally written as instrumental compositions or improvisations. Their homage to vocalese is made even more exceptional with the contributions of the legendary singers who make guest appearances on the album: NEA Jazz Masters (and Grammy Award-winners) Jon Hendricks and Annie Ross; NEA Jazz Master Sheila Jordan, Arkansas Hall of Famer and Jazz and Schoolhouse Rock mastermind Bob Dorough and six-time Grammy nominee Mark Murphy. With the Support Band, Steve Schmidt (piano) Roni Ben Hur (guitar) Sean Smith (bass) Steve Williams (drums), Steve Kroon (percussion). Timeless indeed when this level of craftsmanship is assembled Jazz Pop/Vocalese never sounded...