ROBIN McKELLE - Mess Around (2010) APE (tracks), lossless

Robin McKelle's previous recordings featured a big band, with her vocal stylings leaning on the pop side of jazz. While effective to a degree, she sounds similar in this setting, where this band is stripped down, a small horn section remains and electric keyboards still give the music a retro feel. Her tune choices are all over the map, copping soul and pop tunes with a funky underpinning, rarely swinging although occasionally shuffling, and featuring McKelle's coarse, gritty, at times supple, sophisticated voice. Her accompanying musicians are cream-of-the-crop up-and-comers, including keyboardist Xavier Davis, bassist Tim Lefevbre, saxophonists Mark Gross and Alex Harding, as well as two appearances by veteran Houston Person. Inspired by Ray Charles, the title track takes on a boogaloo facade with Wurlitzer organ, but a similar beat is thrust into Leonard Cohen's "Everybody Knows." Better suited for ballads as "Cry Me a River," McKelle does have that blue-eyed soul thing going on, but it's the amalgam of the Beatles meeting James Brown through "The Girl from Ipanema" during her version of "Eleanor Rigby" that shows where McKelle is really coming from. A credible effort if not somewhat been there/done that by others, it's to Robin McKelle's plus side that she is seeking new vibes out of something created in her old soul.  by Michael G. Nastos 
Tracklist:
1     Mess Around    4:33   
Robin McKelle
2     I Can't See Nobody    3:52   
Barry Gibb / Robin Gibb
3     Never Make a Move Too Soon    4:21   
N. Hooper
4     Everybody Knows    5:05   
Leonard Cohen
5     Angel    6:07     
Robin McKelle
6     Until the Day I Die    4:58 
Robin McKelle
7     Cry Me a River    4:38
Arthur Hamilton
8     Lonely Avenue    3:24 
Doc Pomus
9     Eleanor Rigby    3:21   
John Lennon / Paul McCartney
10     I Just Want to Make Love to You    4:24   
Willie Dixon / Gordon Gano
11     Since I Looked in Your Eyes    3:35   
Robin McKelle
Credits
    Alto Saxophone – Travis Sullivan
    Arranged By – Alain Mallet, Fred Wesley
    Baritone Saxophone – Alex Harding
    Bass – Tim Lefebvre
    Drums – Mark McLean
    Flugelhorn – Scott Harrell
    Guitar – Marvin Sewell
    Keyboards – Alain Mallet, Xavier Davis
    Organ – Adam Klipple
    Tenor Saxophone – Houston Person, Mark Gross, Michael Tucker
    Trombone – Jeff Galindo, Nelson Foltz
    Trumpet – Ravi Best, Scott Harrell
    Vocals – Robin McKelle

  

SARAH McKENZIE - Paris in the Rain (2017) FLAC (tracks), lossless

 When Sarah McKenzie released her debut album Don’t Tempt Me in 2011, she showed talent and promise. Five years later, she has delivered on that promise and excelled in her musical craft.  Paris in the Rain, her second outing on the Impulse Jazz Label sees her embarking on adventurous new harmonic territory and expanding her skills as a pianist, singer and songwriter.

To me, the idea of Paris always holds connotations of romanticism and history, and here Sarah also takes this approach. She crafts her own tunes – set alongside timeless classics of the jazz repertoire, made famous by the great singers of the day – and marks her own approach to them. All at once 

they are stepping back in time, yet so modern. Sarah demonstrates why these songs and their associations are indeed timeless.

The album opens with the iconic Tea for Two. The trumpet solo with mute adds a nice tone colour to the mix. Sarah’s zesty and up-tempo rendition sets up the groove with the band, over which her vocals dart and glide. There are plenty of great solo moments on this track.

Following this strong opener, the next track is Sarah’s own Paris in the Rain. The lyric: “I’d trade a summer day again and again, just for one kiss and Paris in the rain” is genius, and harks back to the great masters who penned many of the lyrics to what are now iconic jazz standards. This song shows Sarah’s knack for songwriting and her arrangement weaves splashes of colour in and out of the vocal line.

The optimistic and fun Onwards and Upwards, penned by Sarah, has the feel of a 1950s television show theme. It’s witty, clever and has one of the catchiest melodies I’ve ever heard. Her solo on this track is superb. It’s got hints of Nat King Cole, in that she repeats a fragment of an idea for a period of time before moving to the next. Within this, Sarah articulates each note – demonstrating she can make the piano sing with this kind of phrasing and articulation. The addition of flute and vibraphone also gives it a Henry Mancini-flavour, and you can hear the optimism in this tune.

Sarah approaches When In Rome with a samba feel. She sets up this tune with a fresh take in the form of an ostinato (which returns throughout the track). In the bridge, she launches into a hard swing and pulls the phrase before hitting the climax of the tune on a pedal point. This track approaches this 

tune much in the way that Blossom Dearie once did, particularly in the final chorus. The phrasing swings hard. Each note gets a slight accent as it descends through the melodic line, and ends with a lush chord that drives the momentum forward. Similarly, I’m Old Fashioned is another ironic 

standard that gets a fresh outing with inventive musical ideas, while still retaining the feeling and sense of the song itself. 

On the more melancholy side of the album are Little Girl Blue and Triste. These moody and introspective tracks offer Sarah the chance to explore more emotional content, which she delivers with stunning conviction. What is remarkable about these tunes in the hands of Sarah is that they both offer optimism in their final moments.

The closing statement is an instrumental Road Chops. Not overtly complex, it is a series of chord changes that allows the musicians to shine in extended solos. What is effective about using this at the end is that it almost acts like an encore to the rest of the album and cements the feeling that you are at a live gig; there’s excitement and energy all around and being jazz, anything could happen.

Sarah has captured that sound world of the 1950s, made famous by Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Ella Fitzgerald, Nat King Cole and others. But in Sarah’s hands, it sounds fresh, modern and hip as ever. This album speaks of the nostalgic and romanticised idea of Paris in the Rain, but is never cheesy. This combination of jazz standards and her original songs shows Sarah at her finest. There’s a great sense of ensemble playing and the band is cohesive and energetic at all times. Sarah is an artist who 

knows exactly where she comes from, where she is, and where she is going. by Samuel Cottell 

Tracklist
1 - Tea for Two  4:06
2 - Paris in the Rain  3:47
3 - One Jealous Moon  4:15
4 - Little Girl Blue  3:51
5 - I'm Old Fashioned  4:44
6 - When in Rome  3:15
7 - Triste  3:55
8 - Embraceable You  4:35
9 - In the Name of Love  4:17
10 - Don't Be a Fool  3:59
11 - Onwards and Upwards!  3:27
12 - Day in Day Out  4:21
13 - Road Chops  3:56

VANESSA RUBIN - I'm Glad There Is You : A Tribute to Carmen McRae (1994) APE (image+.cue), lossless

 
 This Vanessa Rubin release is a tribute to Carmen McRae. Although she cites McRae as a major influence, Rubin actually does not sound much like her and leans as much toward middle-of-the-road music as jazz. Also, not all of these songs are really identified with McRae (most notably "Send in the Clowns" which was largely owned by Sarah Vaughan). The ballad-dominated set does have a reasonable amount of variety, Rubin gets off some fine scatting on "Yardbird Suite" and she introduces an excellent original in "No Strings Attached." A variety of guests (including Grover Washington, Jr., Frank Foster, Antonio Hart, Cecil Bridgewater, Kenny Burrell and Monty Alexander) only appear on one or two songs apiece and do not make that much of an impression. However Vanessa Rubin's attractive voice is strong enough to carry the music and this release is a step forward for her.  by Scott Yanow
Tracklist:
1 Yardbird Suite 3:30
Eddie Jefferson / Charlie Parker
2 I'm Glad There Is You 7:00
Jimmy Dorsey / Paul Mertz
3 Midnight Sun 5:33
Sonny Burke / Lionel Hampton / Johnny Mercer
4 Inside a Silent Tear 6:10
Blossom Dearie / A. King
5 No Strings Attached 6:10
Vanessa Rubin
6 Alfie 6:30
Burt Bacharach / Hal David
7 Speak Low 6:50
Ogden Nash / Kurt Weill
8 Easy Living 6:05
Ralph Rainger / Leo Robin
9 A Child Is Born 3:43
Thad Jones
10 Send in the Clowns 6:31
Stephen Sondheim
Credits
Monty Alexander - Piano
Cecil Bridgewater - Producer, Trumpet
Kenny Burrell - Guitar
Charles Fambrough - Arranger, Bass
Frank Foster - Sax (Tenor)
Aaron Graves - Piano
Antonio Hart - Sax (Alto)
Yoron Israel - Drums
Carlos McKinney - Piano
Michael Rubin - Percussion
Vanessa Rubin - Arranger, Composer, Producer, Vocals
Grover Washington, Jr. - Sax (Soprano), Sax (Tenor)
 

AMIMA CLAUDINE MYERS - Jumping in the Sugar Bowl (1984) FLAC (tracks), lossless

Intense, provocative mixture of outside and inside sensibilities. Myers at times ranges and attacks the keyboard, then will change direction and display a soulful, gospel-influenced style. The constantly shifting session keeps things interesting, and there are some fine solos as well. by Ron Wynn
Tracklist:
1 Jumping in the Sugar Bowl 8:31
Amina Claudine Myers
2 Another Day 6:03
Catherine Bowne / Amina Claudine Myers
3 Cecil B 9:24
Amina Claudine Myers

4 Guten Morgen 9:46  

Amina Claudine Myers

5 Mind Chambers 6:10

Amina Claudine Myers
6 Cameloupe 7:50
Amina Claudine Myers

Personnel:

Bass, Double Bass - Thomas Palmer
Music By - Amina Claudine Myers
Percussion, Voice - Reggie Nicholson
Piano, Voice, Organ - Amina Claudine Myers