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Showing posts with the label Ella Fitzgerald

Album Review: Live at Vic’s from Nicole Zuraitis

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Album:  Live at Vic's Artist:   Nicole Zuraitis Label:   Self-Released Website:  www.nicolezmusic.com Warm and sensual, Nicole Zuraitis's vocals lure her audiences into an uplifting mood, lull them into a tranquil state, and leaves an indelible imprint in their minds.  Her 2025 release Live at Vic's was recorded in front of a live audience, giving the listener insight into her animated interactions with her band and personalized touch at a live performance.   A fusion of soul, jazz, rhythm and blues, and adult contemporary, Zuraitis's vocals softly cradle the lyrics, as her purring timbres shape and refine the delicate nuances in her delivery of "Pure Imagination," making it an exceptional piece.  Turning her vocals shimmery and percussive through her reimagination of Dolly Parton's tune "Jolene," Zuraitis's vocals portray unbridled passion.  Her duet with bassist Samuel Weber cruises charmingly along "The Coffee Song," demonstratin...

Album Review: The Silent Wish from Michelle Nicolle

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Album:  The Silent Wish Artist:  Michelle Nicolle Label:  Self-Released Website:  Michellenicolle.com Facebook.com/jazzsingeraustralia IG: @michellenicollejazz Bandcamp: https://michellenicolle.bandcamp.com/ Relishing a career as a vocalist-composer that has spanned more than 30 years singing with a multi-piece band, Australian based performer Michelle Nicolle strove to leap into unknown vocal territory with her recording The Silent Wish .  Backed by Southern Californian native, guitarist Larry Koonse, Nicolle found the inspiration she was looking for, performing eight standards plus one song from a New Zealand pop band, and one song penned by Nicolle.   The recording is her 11th release and her first release in the USA.  The warm intimacy she emotes in her delivery, the tenderness she applies to the lyrics, the nuanced layers of her timbres, the depth of her vocal inflections all demonstrate her talent and charisma to breathe life into a song. The sou...

Single Review: You're Driving Me Crazy from Naama Gheber

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Single:  You're Driving Me Crazy Artist:  Naama Gheber Website:  https://www.naamagheber.com Naama Gheber's treatment of popular tunes from the Great American Songbook is manna for the ears.  Her reimagining of Walter Donaldson's 1930 classic blues ballad "You're Driving Me Crazy," made popular by vocalist Billie Holiday and saxophonist Stan Getz, is another delight that will be included in her November 2022 EP If I Knew Then. In the vane of Holiday, Gheber personalizes the song with flirty inflections and nuanced vocals that engage the listener's attention.  Joined by pianist Ben Paterson, bassist Neal Miner, and drummer Evan Sherman, Gheber indulges in a playful exchange with her band, displaying a charisma that is entirely of her own style.  Gheber's vocals move from a mambo-infused sway to a sprightly swing and closes with a bluesy vamp.  The arrangement keeps the listener bewitched by the versatility and flexibility in her vocals, and her instinct...

Single Review: Old Mother Hubbard from Naama Gheber

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Single:  Old Mother Hubbard Artist:  Naama Gheber Release Date:  April 22, 2022 Websites:  https://www.naamagheber.com https://open.spotify.com/artist/1KObvUW72IGgUzVi9oe60n A veritable newcomer to swing, vocalist Naama Gheber demonstrates a keen instinct for cabaret blues and ragtime jazz.  Her melodic sensibilities are reminiscent of vintage Café Society's staples like Bessie Smith and Connie Haines.  Her forthcoming recording If I Knew Then , due out on November 4, 2022, is led by her single "Old Mother Hubbard" due to be released on April 22, 2022. "Old Mother Hubbard," an old nursery rhyme from the 19th century, was tweaked by Ella Fitzgerald in the 1940's.  Resurfaced rarely since then, Gheber exhumed the tune from the coffers of the past and polished it with her glimmering timbres.  Her adaptation of the melody gives the track a 21st century luster, laden with a natural fluidity and zesty, swinging rhythmic pulse.  Her smooth versing s...