19 February 2010
By Lyov
In Jazz
Nightwatch
Silje Nergaard (born June 19, 1966 in Steinkjer, Norway) is a Norwegian pop and jazz vocalist based in Oslo. While her music early in her career (e.g. Si det, si det from 1985) may have had a distinct pop feel, she has since moved on, and virtually all of her later releases consist of jazz-oriented tunes.
Silje Nergaard has, within the last six years, established herself as one of the most original & most interesting artists working within the European jazz arena. Her 2003 release, ‘Nightwatch’ (2003, Universal Music), is her eighth album. Recorded in Oslo, Norway & Stockholm, Sweden, Silje Nergaard further develops her unique brand of strong melodic jazz in sophisticated arrangements, flavored by a captivating voice....
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female vocalists, Jazz, jazz vocal, norwegian, Silje Nergaard, vocal jazz
14 February 2010
By Lyov
In Jazz
Sinne Eeg
”A fully mature artist who dares to take chances, and succeeds with an instinctive feeling that lends credibility to everything she does.” – Boris Rabinowitsch, Politiken (Danish national daily newspaper) Sinne Eeg released Waiting For Dawn – her second album in her own name – in August 2007, four years after the release of her debut CD Sinne Eeg. Waiting For Dawn has stirred up a great deal of enthusiasm, both among critics and the listening public, and 2007 Sinne Eeg recieved a Danish Music Award (vocal jazz album of the year) for this album. ”Not a single track seems superfluous; not one passage in a song seems lacking – which is why the album is so masterful. Immediately accessible, but at the same time so complex that new layers are constantly revealing themselves.” – Gaffa (Danish music magazine) ”A voice that is warm and tremendously expressive – sometimes revealing a touch of fragility – and whose emotional register ranges from delicate modesty to explosiveness, without falling for the temptation of over dramatizing. Add to this a talent for phrasing and a rhythmic emancipation that makes the music come alive in a way I have not experienced in any other Danish singer. It is equally rare to encounter a CD release containing a series of newly-written songs that are such gems.” – Boris Rabinowitsch, Politiken Sinne Eeg has been exceptionally busy on the Danish music scene – and has also made several tours of Japan and China – during the four years that have passed between her 2003 CD debut and her 2007 release Waiting For Daw....
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Jazz, jazz vocal, scandinavian, scandinavian girls, scandinavian girls: denmark
03 January 2010
By Lyov
In Jazz
Lady In Satin (Remastered)
This is the most controversial of all Billie Holiday records. Lady Day herself said that this session (which finds her accompanied by Ray Ellis’ string orchestra) was her personal favorite, and many listeners have found her emotional versions of such songs as “I’m a Fool to Want You,” “You Don’t Know What Love Is,” “Glad to Be Unhappy,” and particularly “You’ve Changed” to be quite touching. But Holiday’s voice was essentially gone by 1958, and although not yet 43, she could have passed for 73. Ellis’ arrangements do not help, veering close to Muzak; most of this record is very difficult to listen to. Late in life, Holiday expressed the pain of life so effectively that her croaking voice had become almost unbearable to hear. There is certainly a wide range of opinion as to the value of this set. [The 1997 CD reissue adds two alternate takes of “I’m a Fool to Want You,” part of which were used for the original released rendition, plus the stereo version of “The End of a Love Affair” (only previously released in mono) and examples of Lady Day rehearsing the latter song, including a long unaccompanied stretch....
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Billie Holiday, Blues, female vocalists, Jazz, jazz vocal, Lady In Satin, vocal jazz
04 December 2009
By Lyov
In Jazz
Sophisticated Lady
Sarah Lois Vaughan (nicknamed “Sassy” and “The Divine One”) (March 27, 1924, Newark, New Jersey – April 3, 1990, Los Angeles, California) was an American jazz singer, described as “possessor of one of the most wondrous voices of the 20th century”. Jazz critic Leonard Feather called her “the most important singer to emerge from the bop era.” Ella Fitzgerald called her the world’s “greatest singing talent. ” When introduced in her two-part interview of 1980 on The Dick Cavett Show, Cavett quipped (in a takeoff on a well known Sarah Lee product advertising slogan of the time), “Everybody doesn’t like something, but nobody doesn’t like Sarah Vaughn.” During the course of a career that spanned nearly fifty years, she was the singer’s singer, influencing everyone from Mel Torme to Anita Baker. She was among the musical elite identified by their first names. She was Sarah, Sassy — the incomparable Sarah Vaughan....
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20th century, ellingtonia, Jazz, jazz ballads, jazz vocal, Sarah Vaughan, Sophisticated Lady
30 November 2009
By Lyov
In Jazz
Make Someone Happy
Toronto’s Sophie Milman has that rare ability to appeal to two often deeply separated worlds: those who like their jazz light and those purists who want their jazz heavy and nothing short of it. By having a more-than-capable traditional jazz band and challenging herself vocally to bring the swing, she has commanded respect from both camps. Milman’s delivery is silky smooth, a gorgeous voice with a low register reminiscent of Fiona Apple and an upper register that brings Ella Fitzgerald’s bounce and playfulness to mind. Like many jazz vocal discs, her sophomore release Make Someone Happy contains an abundance of covers, but some rather surprising in style. The often-done “Fever”’s arrangement is nothing like the original, containing more of an unnerving musical undercurrent than the traditional sultry one. Milman–who recorded this disc in her early 20s–covers a number of underdone melodies, from Stevie Wonder’s “Rocket Love” to the Guess Who’s “Undun” with composer/original band guitarist Randy Bachman offering his sonic inflections to the song. Disc high points include the smokin’ jam “It Might As Well Be Spring,” the sexy bossa nova of original track “Something in the Air Between Us” and the beautiful cover of “Eli, Eli” by Second World War Holocaust hero and poet Hannah Senesh. It is a brave and haunting number that Milman does great justice to....
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canadian, female vocalists, Jazz, jazz vocal, Make Someone Happy, Sophie Milman, vocal jazz
01 November 2009
By Lyov
In Jazz
The Wildest!
The album cover of Louis Prima’s THE WILDEST! perfectly captures the unabashed and ever-present enthusiasm of the famed Italian-American vocalist/trumpeter–head tilted back, mouth agape, and a smile a mile wide. This 1957 record contains many of Prima’s best-known songs, including the boisterous “Just a Gigolo/I Ain’t Got Nobody” (covered by David Lee Roth in the ’80s) and the swinging (and self-penned) “Jump, Jive, an’ Wail” (revived in the ’90s by the Brian Setzer Orchestra), along with the jazzy “Basin Street Blues/When It’s Sleepy Time Down South,” a nod to his hero and greatest influence, Louis Armstrong....
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big band, Jazz, jazz vocal, Keely Smith, Louis Prima, Lounge, swing, The Wildes
28 October 2009
By Lyov
In Jazz
Lady Be Good!
The new JAZZ CLUB series is an attractive addition to the Verve catalogue. With its modern design and popular choice of repertoire, the JAZZ CLUB is not only opened for Jazz fans, but for everyone that loves good music. This collection by the elegant Ella Fitzgerald features 18 tracks including ‘A-Tisket A-Tasket’, ‘Lullaby Of Birdland’, ‘The Lady Is A Tramp’ and more. 2006....
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Ella Fitzgerald, feel good music, female vocal jazz, female vocalists, Jazz, jazz vocal, Lady Be Good!
Bud Powell
Lisa Hindmarsh
Shivaree
Caroline Henderson
Ms Dynamite
