A Romantic Evening With Jackie Allen: Live at the Rococo

Jackie Allen
A Romantic Evening With Jackie Allen: Live at the Rococo
Avant Bass

Vocalist Jackie Allen has had a career spanning three decades. She has issued 12 albums before this new release. While I am reviewing the CD, this does come as a CD/Blu-Ray set. This CD has her singing a mix of musical styles, including songs associated with Billie Holiday, The Temptations, Paul Simon, Billy Strayhorn, Carly Simon, and Joe Cocker. Her backing band consists of her husband Hans Sturm on bass, Ben Lewis on piano, guitarist John Moulder, percussionist Dane Richeson, and reeds player Bob Sheppard. Allen and Sturm, originally from Chicago, have been living in Lincoln, Nebraska. The Rococo is a former movie theatre that is now an ornate showcase for the arts. The performance was videoed for Nebraska's Educational Television, and a half-hour version has played on several public television stations.

Allen shines as a vocalist with a smokey voice, her phrasing and use of vocal dynamics. Her vocal style, paired with the arrangements she provides, has her convey sassiness, intimacy, or refection while she is marvelously backed. Furthermore, her arrangements give a freshness to the songs. This is evident during the opening 'What a Little Moonlight Can Do." Much of the performance is at a brisk, swinging tempo like Billie Holiday's classic recording, and Allen has no problem navigating the pace. But there is a place where the tempo slows, and this almost becomes a duet by her and the stride-laden piano of Lewis. Lewis also tears into a hot solo as does Sheppard on tenor sax. She continues a celebration of romantic music with a lovely interpretation of Billy Strayhorn's "Daybreak," where the clarity of her phrasing, her enunciation of the words, captivates listeners. Her ability to highlight the meaning of the songs also is showcased on "Everything I Got Belongs To You." Lewis plays the mbira (an African thumb piano) and Sheppard the flute to provide an exotic flavor to "Lazy Afternoon."

Her transformation of rock and soul tunes of the past few decades is another factor making this recording so appealing. This includes her deep-from-the-heart rendition of the Joe Cocker hit, "You Are So Beautiful" with guitarist Moulder featured). Also, there is a lively, funky take of The Temptations' classic "The Way You Do, The Things You Do." Sheppard is outstanding in his commentary to her vocal. There is also an engaging intimacy to her performance of Paul Simon's "Still Crazy After All These Years." Sturm's bass anchors the performance while Lewis' restrained organ provides atmosphere. Then she incorporates a bossa nova feel to a marvelous 'My Funny Valentine."

With a splendid selection of material, imaginative arrangements of the songs, her excellent band, and her superb singing, Jackie Allen's "A Romantic Evening" is an outstanding vocal jazz recording.

I received a download to review from a publicist. Here Jackie Allen and Hank Sturm perform "Still Crazy After All These Years."

 

Judy Wexler Crowded Heart

Judy Wexler
Crowded Heart
Jewel City Jazz

This is the fifth album by Judy Wexler and is an effort to present "jazz standards for the 21st century," an anthology of ten timeless modern jazz compositions by contemporary songwriters. The album is arranged by piano great Alan Pasqua (who co-produced this with Wexler). It features a band comprised of some of the finest, first-call musicians in Southern California including Alan Pasqua piano, melodica, whistling; Larry Koonse guitar; Josh Johnson alto sax; Bob Sheppard alto flute; Darek Oles bass; Steve Hass drums; Aaron Serfaty percussion; and Stefanie Fife cello.

When Wexler first conceived of this project, she reached out to jazz historian Ted Gioia, author of "The Jazz Standards," for advice. He told her that jazz stays alive and becomes more than a history lesson or museum piece when a modern composition is embraced and recorded by many vocalists. Gioia himself states that this recording is a joy to listen to and commends "their astuteness in finding and featuring outstanding songs by current-day jazz composers." Some of these composers are Luciana Souza, Larry Klein and David Batteau; Richard Galliano; Kurt Elling; Gregory Porter; Fred Hersch; Norma Winstone; Alan Broadbent; Georgia Mancio; René Marie; Enrico Pieranunzi, Lorraine Feather; Larry Goldings, and Alan Pasqua.

Wexler has a delightful, sometimes dreamy voice that conveys joy and heartbreak with her swing, phrasing, clear diction, and sweet-tone. This is clear on the opening "Circus Life" (from Sousa, Klein, and Batteau), with the supple backing, including Koonse's guitar, which adds a samba-tinge, Pasqua's understated support, and whistling, and Wexler's overdubbed second vocal part. Then there is the charm of her vocal that expresses the longing inherent in Galliano and Elling's "Parisian Heartbreak." Pasqua's melodica solo adds to the allure of this performance. Then there is her rendition of the title track about a relationship ending as she realizes it is time to part which is delivered with style.

While I enjoy Wexler's interpretation of Gregory Porter's "Painted on Canvas" with Josh Jackson's sonorous alto sax, and Pasqua's ingenious arrangement, her mellifluous vocal is overshadowed by Porter's original. Bob Sheppard's alto flute adds to the allure of "The Last Goodbye," another song of remembrance and longing. Then there is Wexler's unabashed romanticism singing René Marie's "Take My Breath Away," with a stunning Koonse acoustic guitar solo. In a program of mostly ballads, the gentle swing of "I Took Your Hand," is a nice change of pace.

Pasqua collaborated with Kirk Elling and Philip Edward Galdston in writing "And We Will Fly" with the dreaming vocal supported by the lovely backing with Fife's cello adding color along with another choice acoustic guitar solo. It closes a beautiful, first-rate vocal jazz recording.

I received my review copy from a publicist. Here is "The Last Goodbye" from this CD.

Doug MacDonald Quartet Organism

Doug MacDonald Quartet
Organism
Self-Produced

"Organism" is the thirteenth album (and 3rd organ project) by guitarist MacDonald who leads an organ quartet including organist Carey Frank, tenor saxophonist Bob Sheppard, and drummer Ben Scholz. MacDonald is a Philadelphia native who was inspired by Inspired by such guitarists as Joe Pass, Johnny Smith, Howard Roberts, and Wes Montgomery while forging a personal style. He first played jazz in Hawaii working at a hotel followed by a period in Las Vegas where he played in lounges and showrooms with such greats as Joe Williams, trombonist Carl Fontana, and tenor-saxophonist Jack Montrose. MacDonald has become a fixture in Los Angeles playing with the big bands of Bill Holman, Ray Anthony, and John Clayton as well as such performers as Ray Charles, Sarah Vaughan, Stan Getz, pianist Hank Jones, and bassist Ray Brown. He also leads his own combos and his 13-piece ensemble The Jazz Coalition.

He impresses with his clean, fleet and imaginative attack and thoughtfully constructed solos. While much of this recording is straight-ahead organ quartet performance such as the opening rendition of "It's You or No One" where he opens unaccompanied and then dazzles with his driving solo solidly backed by Frank and Scholz before Sheppard impresses with the warmth and controlled heat of his tenor sax here and Frank takes off on the Hammond B-3. MacDonald's original "Jazz for All Occasions" opens with some fine tenor sax from Sheppard with MacDonald chording under him, followed by "L&T" starting in an atmospheric vein before becoming a heated swinger with more strong guitar.

Also, especially worthy of note is the imaginative interpretation of Sweets Edison's, "Centerpiece" with some sinewy, bluesy tenor sax with Frank supplying some cooking grease, while the lovely ballad performance, "Too Late Now," opens with some exquisite unaccompanied guitar before Sheppard plays with considerable warmth in his lyrical solo. A medley of "Nina Never Knew" with "Indian Summer" is the first of three solo guitar performances where MacDonald fully exhibits his clean, fleet attack and marvelous tone on a precious performance. "Poor Butterfly" is a solid, swinging solo performance, while MacDonald's original "Hortense," has a sparkly tone to it.

"Organism" is a recording with considerable charm. The Doug MacDonald Quartet has a clean ensemble sound as well as with controlled heat, providing a firm foundation for the imaginative, well-shaped solos heard on this very engaging recording.

I received my review copy from a publicist. This review appeared in the May-June 2019 Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 384) although there may some minor changes from the review that appeared thre. Here is a video of Doug talking about this recording with drummer and producer Ben Scholz.