With cunning and stealth, jazz vocalists are infiltrating the pop music market. At the time of this writing, Norah Jones, who records for jazz label Blue Note even though her CD is arguably a pop effort, is in the No. 6 position on the Billboard Pop Albums chart. Out jazz artist Patricia Barber's latest CD, Verse, is getting lots of attention, and a nearly full house at the Symphony Center in Chicago worshipped at the altar of Cassandra Wilson in mid-September.
Natalie Cole is obviously aware of the growing prevalence of jazz vocals, her Grammy-winning album of standards paving the way for the resurgence. Backed up by the likes of Christian McBride, Rob Mounsey, and Joe Sample, to name a few, Cole has released an album of jazz vocals titled Ask a Woman Who Knows ( Verve ) , on which she wisely chose to interpret some unexpected numbers. She gives a smooth and relaxed reading of Sergio Mendes's "So Many Stars," respecting the roots of the song. Her snappy takes on "It's Crazy" and "My Baby Just Cares For Me" have just the right amount of bounce, and her polite duet with Diana Krall on "Better Than Anything," is lighter than air.
Speaking of Diana Krall, the reigning queen of the jazz vocal scene has a new live album...Live In Paris ( Verve ) ...on which she demonstrates her broad reach. From the Gershwins ( "'S Wonderful" ) to Joni Mitchell ( "A Case Of You" ) , to lots more in between ( including Billy Joel, Peggy Lee, Cole Porter, and Burt Bacharach and Hal David ) , Krall's crown appears to be firmly planted atop her head.
British vocalist Barb Jungr's 2000 disc Chanson: The Space In Between made The Sunday Times' list of Ten Best Jazz CDs. Her latest, Every Grain Of Sand: Barb Jungr Sings Bob Dylan ( Linn ) , features jazz and cabaret vocal interpretations of 15 Dylan tunes. Spanning a considerable portion of his career, Jungr says that the songs she chose are "not meant to be any kind of statement about the quality or relevance" of the songs. The most obvious thing about these songs is that they allow Jungr to render them in a variety of settings. "I'll Be Your Baby Tonight," "Not Dark Yet," "Sugar Baby," and "What Good Am I?," for instance, are more traditional jazz vocal arrangements. "If Not For You," "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue," and "Forever Young," have a definite cabaret feel to them, while "Ring Them Bells" and "Every Grain Of Sand," are presented in appropriately gospel-like arrangements.
Like Barb Jungr, Dee Dee Bridgewater has recorded an album representing the work of a composer. This Is New ( Verve ) contains Bridgewater's singular renditions of 11 songs composed by Kurt Weill. Weill's collaborations with Ira Gershwin ( the title track, "The Saga Of Jenny" ) , Maxwell Anderson ( "Lost In The Stars," "September Song" ) , Bertolt Brecht ( "Alabama Song" ) , and Ogden Nash ( "I'm A Stranger Here Myself," "Speak Low" ) , are all safe and sounding great in the more than capable hands of Ms. Bridgewater.
After an eight-year absence, jazz singer Laird Jackson returns with her new CD Touched ( CAP ) . Jackson opens the disc with Stevie Wonder's "Visions," and like Krall, also covers Joni Mitchell, performing a languorous version of "Tin Angel." Undergoing a resurgence in popularity, Kurt Weill is also covered on Jackson's disc, on which she performs "Lonely House," Weill's collaboration with Langston Hughes. More than half of the tunes are Jackson originals, the best of which include the prayerful a cappella "Yet Still" and the horn-enhanced "You Are Near."
Laird Jackson isn't the only one who saw Stevie Wonder's potential for jazz vocalists. On Tales Of Wonder ( Concord ) , Nnenna Freelon pays tribute to the legendary songwriter with her terrific 12-track disc. Her imaginative restatements of these Wonder-ful songs bring out the jazz soul in each one of them. Particularly rewarding are "Overjoyed," "Creepin'," "All In Love Is Fair," "Send One Your Love," "Another Star," and the amazing re-imagining of "The Tears Of A Clown."
As with the Laird Jackson disc, Love's Holiday ( Sharp 9 ) by Dena DeRose is a smooth blend of standards and original songs. It's almost as enjoyable listening to DeRose play piano as it is listening to her sing. That's why a DeRose composition such as "Marian's Mood" is such a pleasure. Written for living jazz piano legend Marian McPartland, DeRose pays loving tribute to this influential and beloved artist in this instrumental piece.
OK, so Barbara Carroll doesn't sing much on One Morning In May ( Fynsworth Alley ) , but her piano sure does. Her tasteful jazz-piano renditions of songs by Thelonious Monk ( "In Walked Bud" ) , Duke Ellington ( "Come Sunday" ) , Antonio Carlos Jobim ( "Zingaro" ) , and Billy Strayhorn ( "A Flower Is A Lonesome Thing" ) , among others, earn Carroll a place in this column. When she does sing, as she does on "I Could Make You Care," it makes the listener wonder why she doesn't do it more.
Jane Blackstone's vocals and phrasing remind me of Patti Austin on her CD Natural Habitat NYC ( Motief ) . Of the 11 songs, two are Blackstone originals, and the remaining tunes blend the familiar and the new. "Mystics," "Room For Everybody," "We Kiss In A Shadow," and "Nothing Like You /Sometimes I'm Happy" are recommended.
Several male jazz vocalists have also released CDs of note. All-male jazz vocal group Take 6 apply their distinctive group harmonies to a baker's dozen tracks on Beautiful World ( Warner Brothers ) . Many of the songs were written by some of the most highly regarded songwriters of the 1970s and 1980s. Standouts include "Takin' It To The Streets" ( Michael McDonald ) , "Love's In Need Of Love Today" ( Stevie Wonder ) , "Don't Give Up" ( Peter Gabriel ) , "Fragile" ( Sting ) and "Lovely Day" ( Bill Withers ) . Speaking of influential composers, on A Song For You ( Verve ) , Kenny Rankin's uncommon vocals give an equally wide spectrum of songwriters such as Thelonious Monk ( "'Round Midnight" ) , Jerry Leiber and Phil Spector ( "Spanish Harlem" ) , Jerome Kern and Dorothy Fields ( "The Way You Look Tonight" ) , Lennon and McCartney ( "I've Just Seen A Face" ) and Leon Russell ( the title track ) , the chances to be heard in a new way. The smooth and exotic jazz vocal styling of Al Jarreau and Arto Lindsay make their CDs, All I Got ( Verve ) and Invoke ( Righteous Babe ) , respectively, stand out from the crowd.
