Album Review: Love Is from Yvette Norwood-Tiger

-
Album:  Love Is
Artist:  Yvette Norwood-Tiger
Label:  Serenity Records
Website:  www.yvettenorwoodtiger.com

Whether vocalist Yvette Norwood-Tiger is a chameleon or emotionally attached to the lyrics she sings, she is able to portray a wide range of feelings that demonstrates a penetrative vocalese.  Her latest release Love Is proves her versatility as a singer, reaching a range that extends from a graceful gait to a sultry purr. 

Starting off, the Latin trimmings of "Song for My Father" move to the sensual sway of Tiger's vocals, which switch to a rhumba-esque rhythm along "Long Lost Friends," adorned in the ruffling toots of Michael Mackey's trumpet.  Her treatment of "La Vie En Rose" is heartfelt as Mackey's trumpet contours the melody with soaring pouts.  Languid and luxuriating, Tiger's vocalese on "My Funny Valentine" has a smooth bluesy sheen that is incomparable, as she transitions to a spiritual voicing in "Come Sunday," carrying the tune a capella.  The vulnerability in her voice is emotionally charged and moving.

The prayer-like nuances in her voice vibrating along "Dear Lord (Psalm 40)" pulsate a tenderness that is unmatched, as she orchestrates a sleek scat versing along the island-tinged grooves of "It's Time for Love" reminiscent of Dee Dee Bridgewater's off-the-cuff improvising.  In "Blues Skies," a trademark tune for Irving Berlin, Tiger makes the song her own, shaping a jaunty vocal melody that takes the listener on an enjoyable flight.  The swinging pendulum sway of the beats carrying "Time Is a Wrecking Ball" is magnetic, enchanting the playful child-like side of the listener.

From smooth blues jazz rides to soulful spirituals and from lamenting ballads to Latin rhumbas, Yvette Norwood-Tiger generates sensations that strokes the listener in all the right places. Her storytelling repartee showcases an emotional depth in her voice that is unmatched.

Musicians:
Yvette Norwood-Tiger, Love Is, blues, jazz vocals
Ken Burkhart – Piano
Joshua Ewers – Contrabass
Michael Mackey – Trumpet
Jose Roman Duque – Drums
Phil McArthur – Bass on "Time Is A Wrecking Ball"

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Album Review: Becoming Marlene Dietrich from Myriam Phiro

-
Image
Album:  Becoming Marlene Dietrich Artist:  Myriam Phiro Label:  Self-Released Website:  www.myriamphiro.com Smooth jazz vocalist Myriam Phiro introduces a new generation of music listeners to jazz standards that made Marlene Dietrich famous in her time from the 1920's to 1940's with Phiro's new release Becoming Marlene Dietrich .  Although Phiro immerses herself in melodies that had been Dietrich's trademark tunes, Phiro tailors the songs to her likeness.  Her illustrious mezzo-soprano register is higher on the vocal spectrum than Dietrich's contralto pitch, which stamps the tracks with her own unique nuances and inflections.  Her treatment of the verses is finessed with a distinctly soft, feminine touch and a delightfully, hypnotic resonance, setting her style apart from Dietrich's. Her vocals cradle the lyrics of "Quand L’Amour Meurt," written by Georges Crémieux and Octave Millandy, with a warmth that penetrates the listener's soul as Hyuna Park...
Read more

Album Review: The Ways In from James Zollar

-
Image
Album:  The Ways In Artist:  James Zollar Label:  Label: JZAZ Records Websites:  https://www.rsberkeley.com/james-zollar https://www.discogs.com/artist/954763-James-Zollar https://wyntonmarsalis.org/personnel/detail/james-zollar A straight-ahead jazz oeuvre, The Ways In from bandleader and trumpet player James Zollar resumes a quest where pioneers of the trumpet's sympathetic vibrations like Clifford Brown and Bill Coleman left off.  Zollar shows audiences the delightful, melodious tone of the trumpet, moving in harmony with an array of brass, woodwinds, and rhythm instruments. The robust wails of Zollar's trumpet strutting languidly along "Do Nothing 'till You Hear From Me" emotes an enduring personable trait, unwavering persistence in the face of being dejected.  The recording switches to a joyful atmosphere in "Swing Spring" with jangly beats from percussionist Chembo Corniel, interfacing with the buoyant ripples generated by Michael Rorby's trom...
Read more

Album Review: Globetrotter from Luca di Luzio

-
Image
Album:  Globetrotter Artist:  Luca di Luzio Label:  Self-Released Website:  www.lucadiluzio.it   Guitarist Luca di Luzio's upcoming CD, Globetrotter  is an assortment of contemporary jazz tunes bridging funk, blues, soul, and Latin music.  Comprised of a few jazz standards and a handful of original works written by Luca di Luzio, a prolific guitar player who studied different styles of music, the recording expresses his personal vision of jazz guitar based on melody and groove.  Joining Di Luzio in his vision are bass guitarist Jimmy Haslip, drummer Dave Wecki, keyboardist George Whitty, and saxophonists Max Ionata and Alessandro Fariselli. From dance-funk numbers like "Jazzlife" and "Elisir" to the soft billows and reflective moods projected in "Smile" and " Buena Suerte," Di Luzio's artistry stems from his vision to make music that is aesthetically pleasing.  "Sunshower," a tune written by Kenny Barron, is a pr...
Read more