GIRL SINGERS
Lisa Maxwell – Return to Jazz Standards
Released – July 1, 2010CD Purchase Link...click here
Review By: Doug Boynton
Released – July 1, 2010CD Purchase Link...click here
Review By: Doug Boynton
Straight ahead, here. Nothing fancy, but then when you’re this talented, trickery isn’t needed. Lisa Maxwell is an artist on several fronts – a photographer, a free-lance graphic designer, and a top-notch vocal artist, as well. It’s an inspiring story – Ms. Maxwell nearly lost her voice entirely to something called “Bilateral Vocal Fold Paresis” three years ago. Several surgeries later, she was putting her newly-refurbished vocal cords to the test, backed by husband/producer/arranger/pianist George Newall.
You might know Mr. Newall by his work – he was one of the “Schoolhouse Rock” guys. He executive produced, and wrote “Unpack Your Adjectives,” along with “Them Not So Dry Bones” and “I’m Gonna Send Your Vote To College.” On this outing, he’s a literal one-man band, playing piano and just about everything else digitially. He’s one guy who sounds like about five.
But he’s in the background here, putting a frame around Ms. Maxwell’s sweet swing. No powerhouse, but when you’re singing as personally as she does, you don’t need to hit the balcony. Favorites on this disc included the Cole Porter classic, “You’d Be So Nice To Come Home To;” also Johnny Mandel’s “The Shadow Of Your Smile,” and “Moonlight Savings Time,” which Guy Lombardo took to Number One in 1931.
I find myself coming back to this disc over and over again on the ‘pod, and those three tracks (and maybe some others) will be in heavy rotation in the weeks to come.
You might know Mr. Newall by his work – he was one of the “Schoolhouse Rock” guys. He executive produced, and wrote “Unpack Your Adjectives,” along with “Them Not So Dry Bones” and “I’m Gonna Send Your Vote To College.” On this outing, he’s a literal one-man band, playing piano and just about everything else digitially. He’s one guy who sounds like about five.
But he’s in the background here, putting a frame around Ms. Maxwell’s sweet swing. No powerhouse, but when you’re singing as personally as she does, you don’t need to hit the balcony. Favorites on this disc included the Cole Porter classic, “You’d Be So Nice To Come Home To;” also Johnny Mandel’s “The Shadow Of Your Smile,” and “Moonlight Savings Time,” which Guy Lombardo took to Number One in 1931.
I find myself coming back to this disc over and over again on the ‘pod, and those three tracks (and maybe some others) will be in heavy rotation in the weeks to come.
Highly recommended.
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