Taking the mantle of The Manhattan Transfer to the next level, the team of Peter Peter Eldridge, Lauren Kinhan, Darmon Meader and Kim Nazarian mix rich harmonies, vocalese and strong soloing in a wide range of jazz colors and palates. The vocal textures are oil color rich, as they display on the gorgeous a cappela p ieces “Los Tres Golpes” while giving some linguistic percussion to an R&B-ish “Moments in a Mirror.” A palpable piano lurks as the subtle support for a lush “Invitation” , while some synthy sounds make for a folksy “The Forecast Is Sunny” with Kinhan stepping out front.
Clever ideas abound here. A fun choral of Dave Brubeck’s “Blue Rondo a la Turk” is a fun mix of lyricism and wonderful dexterity by Nazarian and Kinham while a festive read of Chick Corea’s Open Your Eyes” has Kinham stepping out from the crowd. Other intriguing moments have Eldridge in a thoughtful mood on Fred Hersch’s “A Dance For Me” and Darmon Meader both scatting and blowing on the tenor for a had swinging “It’s Alright With Me.” The title track is an unfortunately forgotten Ellington classic, richly textured by the serene Nazarian” with the team glistening for a closing read of The Beatles’ “In My Life” that is oozing with sentiment and artistic remembrance. This team needs to come to the Best Coast for us to see as well as believe.