CD Review: Amber Weekes "A Lady With A Song - Amber Weekes Celebrates Nancy Wilson"

 

Nancy Wilson has always been on the top of my list of great Jazz singers.  So when I picked up this  new CD from Amber Weekes, my first reaction was wow, this singer is really brave to take on songs that have Nancy Wilson's personal vocal fingerprints.  Singing songs that are closely linked to great singers is always a challenging task even for the most talented vocalists because as good as your verison is, you will always be compared to the original artist.  

The first song I listened to on this CD was "Lady With A Song" and it convinced me that Amber Weekes is a remarkable Jazz singer.  While this song will always be linked to Nancy Wilson, I love the way Amber presented the lyric in a believable story fashion.  Her voice is strong and her phrasing just flows like syrup on hot pancakes.  This CD is a fine tribute to the singing voice and style of Nancy Wilson but Amber Weekes does not just copy Nancy Wilson, she brings her own interpretations to the Nancy Wilson song book with great success!

Amber Weekes is a Jazz singer based in Southern California and is known as a storyteller who puts heart and honest feelings into her interpretations of superior standards.  This same sentence could have been written to describe Nancy Wilson who performed for over 50 years on the Pop and Jazz stage.  "A Lady With A Song, Amber Weekes Celebrates Nancy Wilson" is a sensational CD by an extremely talented vocalist!

I have attached two "YouTube" videos that will give you a taste of Amber Weekes' work.  The first tune is a beautiful ballad  "Lady With A Song" that features fine Trumpet work from Ray Monteiro and Mike Cordone.    The second tune is the lovely but difficult to sing "Midnight Sun" which Amber sings perfectly. 

                    " Lady With A Song"

                                          
                                                                       "Midnight Sun"

PLAYLIST:

1. Gentleman Friend

2. Save Your Love For Me

3. A Lady With A Song

4. Ten Good Years

5. What A Little Moonlight Can Do

6. Midnight Sun

7. Suppertime

8. Wave

9. Guess Who I Saw Today

10. I'm Always Drunk In San Francisco

11. The Best Is Yet To Come

12. You're Gonna Hear From Me

13. Wasn't It Wonderful

PLAYERS:

Russell Malone- Guitar

Paul Jackson Jr.- Sax

Gerald Albright- Sax

Rickey Woodard- Sax

Justo Almario- Flute

Ray Monteiro- Trumpet

Mike Cordone- Trumpet

Mark Cargill- Violin

Rashawn Ross- Trumpet

Tony Campodonico- Acoustic and Rhodes Piano

Jacob Scesney- Tenor Sax

CD Review: Roger Tilton Trio, "Mostly Bossa"

 

Jazz Pianist Roger Tilton has just recently released his second album featuring his talented Trio consisting of Roger Tilton on Piano, Henry Franklin on Bass and Yayo Morales on Drums.  When Tilton started to put some ideas together for this album, he did not start with Bossa Nova music as the overall theme.  His first thoughts were to put together music that he loved and enjoyed playing.  He has always loved the music of Brazil and especially the beautiful music of Antonio Carlos Jobim.  So as he gathered songs for his new CD it turned out that 7 out of the 9 tunes that made the final cut were Bossa Nova songs.  That explains the title of this CD,  "Mostly Bossa".

Roger Tilton is a classically trained pianist studied at the University of Redlands and took personal lessons with concert Pianist Johanna Harris, wife of American composer Roy Harris.  He first became interested in Jazz listening to Stan Getz playing "Desafinado" and Ramsey Lewis playing "The In Crowd".   While at the University of Redlands, Tilton met Bass Player Rob Fisher who introduced him to the music of Oscar Peterson, Bill Evans, and Denny Zeitlin.  Joining The Roger Tilton Trio on this album is the legendary Bassist Henry Franklin.  Franklin has a star-studded musical career including being a member of the Trumpeter Freddie Hubbert's group.  He also was a part of Drummer Shelly Manne's group and Woody Shaw's band.  In addition to performing regularly,  Franklin also runs his own production company, recording studio and label.  The third member of this talented trio, Drummer Yayo Morales was born in Bolivia and is an exceptional Jazz Drummer in the rhythms of South America and is a perfect addition to the Bossa songs on this CD. Morales also  did the mastering of the songs for this CD.

The Music on "Mostly Bossa" is like most Bossa music,  comfortable and enjoyable.  It is so soothing and relaxing to listen to and the listener can move through the entire CD and still be looking for more. 

The three members of this Trio are all so exceptional and they make the listener feel that playing Bossa Nova music is easy.  This is what really professional Jazz talents do, they interpret complicated songs and rhythms and turn them into attractive and understandable music for their audiences.

I have attached two "YouTube" songs from this CD.  The first tune is "Dindi" the Antonio Carlos Jobim gem.  Tilton mentioned that he had not heard many instrumental versions of it but only vocal renditions.  So glad he did because his instrumental captures the excitment of this wonderful Jobim tune and Brazilian music in general.  The second tune is "Tokyo Blues" the Horace Silver Jazz classic that is titled as a Blues but it is actually based on Boss Nova Rhythms. 

                                                                            "Dindi"
       

                                                                            "Tokyo Blues"
 PLAYERS:

Roger Tilton- Piano

Henry Franklin- Bass

Yayo Morales- Drums

PLAYLIST:  

1. Dindi

2. Tokyo Blues

3. Bossa For Debbie

4. What Is This Thing Called Love

5. 500 Miles High

6. Blue Bossa

7. Brigas Nunca Mais

8. Hackensack

9. Dreamer