“In every cloud there is a silver lining”
As the days “sequestered at home” roll by, it has been an unexpected pleasure to have the time to search for, discover and listen to music that I have never heard before. As you would expect much of this music is jazz vocal music, but my long term affinity for harmony filled rock music, British folk-rock, Brazilian music, and singer/songwriters has filled my days with many hours of pleasurable listening. But that’s only half of the “silver lining”. What has been unexpected is the time to go back and listen to so many albums in my collection that I have not heard for many years. Hope to feature some of these recent “re-discoveries” on future Vocal Sound of Jazz programs. Stay tuned and stay well!...
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Ian Shaw – What’s New...
What’s New is the latest collaboration between two internationally renowned British jazz musicians – vocalist Ian Shaw and saxophonist/composer Iain Ballamy – and Jamie Safir, one of the finest young pianists of his generation. “This recording is a return to how it all started – under the wise advice of Ronnie Scott, thirty years ago – and a discovery of the art of the great popular song,” explains Shaw. … Read...
Jana Herzen – Nothing But Love...
On ‘Nothing But Love’, Jana Herzen’s diverse, soulful and sophisticated collection of folk/pop/world/jazz originals, the singer-songwriter, and guitarist reaches new heights as a storyteller and composer. The wonderfully rich, mature, and complex song tapestry will be released on January 17, by the multi-GRAMMY® winning Motéma label. With its unexpected juxtapositions of isolation, loss, and melancholy, alongside eye winking fun, hopeful ‘turning the page’ and finding the courage to consider letting the sun back in, ‘Nothing But Love’ offers a complex portrait of a force that, in Herzen’s words, ‘makes the world go ‘round’.… Read...
Antonio Adolfo & Leila Pinheiro – Music of Adolfo and Gaspar...
Antonio Adolfo and Leila Pinheiro met in order to create, together, a very special album with his and Tibério Gaspar’s compositions. It was an old dream and, from that idea, Antonio and Leila started to meet, exchange ideas, rehearse, check the tones etc. Musical director and record arranger, Antonio and Leila chose the songs that seemed more current and, through the new versions, brought them a new air.… Read...
Sinne Eeg – We’ve Just Begin...
Any vocalist who can summon the world-class Danish Radio Big Band to serve as a backup group must have something special to offer. Sinne Eeg, whose lustrous voice uplifts and illuminates her ninth album, We’ve Just Begun, has all of that and more. Eeg, as it turns out, is a shining star in her native Denmark—and if she weren’t, she certainly should be.… Read...
Brazilian Music Spotlight
Sergio Mendes
At 78, Brazilian-born pianist, composer, and arranger Sérgio Mendes just might be ready for his closeup. Don’t get me wrong; Mendes has been a face for the breezily sophisticated sounds of Brazil ever since he departed from his mentor Antônio Carlos Jobim and brought jazzy bossa nova into 1960s AM radio-pop prominence. If you’re older than a minute, you’ll remember that there was once no medium where you couldn’t see Mendes’ big eyes and snazzy suits as he played beside the members of his Brasil ’66 ensemble (including Lani Hall, an airily cooing vocalist who became Herb Alpert’s wife), or hear his smoothly ethnic rhythms and chord changes—the cosmopolitan equivalent of Bacharach, Brian Wilson, and the Beatles.… Read...
At 78, Brazilian-born pianist, composer, and arranger Sérgio Mendes just might be ready for his closeup. Don’t get me wrong; Mendes has been a face for the breezily sophisticated sounds of Brazil ever since he departed from his mentor Antônio Carlos Jobim and brought jazzy bossa nova into 1960s AM radio-pop prominence. If you’re older than a minute, you’ll remember that there was once no medium where you couldn’t see Mendes’ big eyes and snazzy suits as he played beside the members of his Brasil ’66 ensemble (including Lani Hall, an airily cooing vocalist who became Herb Alpert’s wife), or hear his smoothly ethnic rhythms and chord changes—the cosmopolitan equivalent of Bacharach, Brian Wilson, and the Beatles.… Read...
Recent Jazz Vocal Discovery
Michelle Nicolle
Known for her ability to get right to the heart of a song, as well as being an in the moment improviser Michelle has continually developed and nurtured her art form with the help of her quartet. As well as releasing 8 CDs the MNQuartet has toured extensively throughout Australia and internationally -highlights include South Korea, Finland, and Czech Republic, Asia Pacific Festival (Russia), Tokyo Jazz Festival, North Sea Jazz Festival (Holland), New Zealand, Turkey, Estonia, Indonesia and Singapore.… Read...
Known for her ability to get right to the heart of a song, as well as being an in the moment improviser Michelle has continually developed and nurtured her art form with the help of her quartet. As well as releasing 8 CDs the MNQuartet has toured extensively throughout Australia and internationally -highlights include South Korea, Finland, and Czech Republic, Asia Pacific Festival (Russia), Tokyo Jazz Festival, North Sea Jazz Festival (Holland), New Zealand, Turkey, Estonia, Indonesia and Singapore.… Read...
Classic Jazz Vocal Album Spotlight
Blossom Dearie – My New Celebrity Is You
Blossom Dearie’s career has undergone a series of unusual and impressive steps. It started in the 40’s with her arrival in New York; local jazz aficionados recall her as the intermission pianist in a 52nd Street strip joint. A long residence in Paris followed in the 50’s where she was the guiding light of a provocatively jazzoriented singing group, the Blue Stars, and later a solo performer, a singer and pianist with a distinctive and imaginative repertory and a voice that managed to combine a little girl’s confidential whisper with an aura of sophistication.… Read...
Blossom Dearie’s career has undergone a series of unusual and impressive steps. It started in the 40’s with her arrival in New York; local jazz aficionados recall her as the intermission pianist in a 52nd Street strip joint. A long residence in Paris followed in the 50’s where she was the guiding light of a provocatively jazzoriented singing group, the Blue Stars, and later a solo performer, a singer and pianist with a distinctive and imaginative repertory and a voice that managed to combine a little girl’s confidential whisper with an aura of sophistication.… Read...
Other Releases of Interest
Nu Deco Ensemble
Since its inception in 2015, Nu Deco Ensemble has exploded onto Miami’s eclectic musical scene captivating audiences, holistically engaging with its community and fusing innovative, genre-bending orchestral performances and collaborations with the highest levels of musical artistry. Nu Deco is reimagining a fresh vision of what an orchestra can achieve in the 21st century. Created by two of classical music’s most in demand artists, Jacomo Bairos and Sam Hyken, Nu Deco Ensemble is a flexible and innovative hybrid orchestra that celebrates living composers, reimagines all genres of music, and collaborates with a wide range of diverse musical guests, composers, choreographers, dancers, and mixed media artists.… Read...
Since its inception in 2015, Nu Deco Ensemble has exploded onto Miami’s eclectic musical scene captivating audiences, holistically engaging with its community and fusing innovative, genre-bending orchestral performances and collaborations with the highest levels of musical artistry. Nu Deco is reimagining a fresh vision of what an orchestra can achieve in the 21st century. Created by two of classical music’s most in demand artists, Jacomo Bairos and Sam Hyken, Nu Deco Ensemble is a flexible and innovative hybrid orchestra that celebrates living composers, reimagines all genres of music, and collaborates with a wide range of diverse musical guests, composers, choreographers, dancers, and mixed media artists.… Read...
The VOCAL SOUND OF JAZZ began airing on 89.5 FM (now WHRV-FM) on January 4th 1980. Originally a 30 minute program that aired on Friday evenings, the program expanded to it current 60 minute format and moved to Saturday evenings during the 90s. It was also aired over WUOM in Ann Arbor, Michigan for a five-year period in the late 1980s.
Produced and hosted by Jack Frieden since its premiere broadcast, the program has always attempted to spotlight both jazz vocal music’s post 1950s history, as well as the new singers and songs that will continue to play an increasingly prominent role in the music’s future. With the internet’s ability to attract and entertain jazz vocal fans globally, Jack looks forward to broadening the mission and reach of the “Vocal Sound of Jazz” in coming years.
Email Jack Frieden
Vocal Sound of Jazz LLC
1056 Downshire Chase
Virginia Beach, Va. 23452
Ph: 757 438 6785