Alexis Cole — "Taking My Seat"
Alexis Cole is a singer I have admired for years. She has been making beautiful music with her golden voice in jazz clubs and on major concert stages, both in the US and internationally. She has released 14 albums, received wonderful reviews, and established herself as one of the most popular jazz singers today.
Alexis has a pure, strong voice and phrasing that allows her to take classic songs from the Great American Songbook and make them sound brand new. But beautiful jazz singing is only one of Alexis's talents. She is also a world-class arranger, pianist, and composer.
Now, at 50, Alexis is using all of her talents on her newly released album, "Taking My Seat". She has brought two extremely talented musicians to join her trio and record her new CD. David Finck is one of the most outstanding jazz bass players in the country, and his specialty is breathing life into standards. Kenny Hassler joins the trio on drums, and the synergy between Kenny, David, and Alexis is wonderful.
It's hard to believe that after all these years of singing with both small and large groups of musicians, "Taking My Seat" is Alexis's first CD on which she also plays piano. She also created all the arrangements, except for "Get Out of Town," which she arranged with Scott Arcangel. Alexis even composed two songs for the album!
What I especially enjoy about an album like "Taking My Seat" is the opportunity to hear a great jazz singer bring her many talents together in one recording. Alexis Cole has the voice, the musical knowledge, and the experience to make these songs her own. With David Finck on bass and Kenny Hassler on drums, she also has the kind of musical support that allows a trio to sound both relaxed and exciting. For me, that is one of the great pleasures of listening to classic jazz performed by musicians who truly understand the music.
Alexis Cole's résumé is packed with super achievements, but her new CD puts her in a class that few musicians ever reach! She is an American jazz treasure, and I look forward to many more years of classic jazz performances from Alexis!
I have selected two songs from "Taking My Seat "that I think illustrate Alexis Cole's talents at their best.
The first is the old Cole Porter chestnut, "Get Out of Town," which has never sounded better. The second is the Brazilian classic written by Roberto Menescal and Ronaldo Bôscoli, "My Little Boat."
Both songs are wonderful examples of what makes Alexis such a special artist. I hope you enjoy listening to them as much as I have.
Players:
- Alexis Cole — Vocals, piano, arranging
- David Finck — Bass
- Kenny Hassler — Drums
- Scott Arcangel — Arranging credit for "Get Out of Town" (shared with Alexis Cole)
Playlist:
1. "Bye Bye Blackbird"
2. "Get Out of Town"
3. "My Little Boat"
4. "Blues for All Us"
5. "Monentary Lapse of Happiness"
6. "The Girl from Ipanema"
7. "My Funny Vallentine"
8. "Jitterbug Waltz"
9. "Here's to Life"
10. "Night and Day"
11. "Yesterdays"
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Alexis Cole is a singer I have admired for years. She has been making beautiful music with her golden voice in Jazz clubs and major concert stages in both the US and internationally. She had released 14 albums for which she has received wonderful reviews and also established her as one of the most popular Jazz singers today. Alexis has a pure, strong voice and phrasing that allows her to take classic songs from the "Great American Songbook" and make them sound brand new. But beautiful Jazz singing is only one of Alexis's talents. She is a world class arranger, pianist and composer. Now at 50, Alexis is using our of her talents in her newly released album, "Taking My Seat". She has brought two extremely talented musicians to join her trio and record her new cd. David Finck is one of the most outstanding Jazz Bass players in the country and his speciality is breathing life into standards. Kenny Hassler joins the trio on Drums and the synergy between Kenny, David and Alexis is wonderful.
It's hard to believe that after all the years that Alexis has singing with both small and large group of musicians that "Taking My Seat" is her first cd where in additional to singing she also plays piano. She also created all the arrangements except for "Get Out of Town" where she shared the arranging with Scott Arcangel. Alexis also composed two songs for her album! Alexis Cole's resume is packed with super achievements but her new cd puts her in a class that few musicians every reach! She is an American Jazz treasure and I look forward to many more years of classic Jazz performances from Alexis!
I have selected two songs from "Get Out of Town" that I think illustrate the best talents of Alexis Cole. The first song is the old Cole Porter chestnut, "Get Out of Town" that never sounded better. The second song is the Brazilian classic written by Roberto Menescal and Ronaldo Boscili, "My Little Boat".
"Get Out of Town"
