Ladies with something to say.
Erin McDougald takes standards and gives them a clever goose on this artistic yet swinging album. She hangs out (in more ways than one, judging by the cover photos) with a team that includes allstars Dave Liebman/ts-ss and Tom Harrell/tp-fh, sounding streetwise on the bluesy “Don’t Be On The Outside” and cleverly wisping to Rob Block’s piano on a nocturnal “Begin the Beguine.” Harrell’s muted horn teamed with Cliff Schmitt’s spacious bass allows McDougald to create a starry night atmosphere during “Man with the Horn” while bowed bass, Block’s guitar and Liebman’s tenor meld with her to form a musical Monet on the title track. Music this good needs to be seen in concert, poses and sartorial stylings notwithstanding.
Diane Marino gives a tribute to composer Gloria Lynne, using her material for this album as a project to bring her music into focus. The songs are framed in arrangements and orchestrations by Brad Cole, with a mix of sophisticated pop like strings and horns giving a Broadway feel to the event. Don Aliquo’s soprano leads into Marino’s sandied and flexible voice on “Somewhere in the Night” and Cole’s own piano creates a nourish mood on the shadowed “Blue Gardenia.” Marino can get a bit sassy, upbeat on “Nothing Ever Changes My Love For You” and is soulful as she bops along Chris Brown’s brushes on “For You.” Stately and uptown.
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