Ah, the stories women tell…
The team of vocalist/bassist Mer Sal and keyboardist Scott Kinsey mix and match with fusion drummers like “Gergo Borlai-Gary Novak as well as guitarists including Scott Henderson, Pedro Martins, Oz Noy and Nir Felder on this exotic collection of soulful tunes. With tenor saxist Steve Tavaglione, the band snaps to Jimmy Haslip’s bass on the Steely Dan piece “Time Out Of Mind” with Sal in riveting form. She’s folksy and indie oriented on “Heart of Glass” and “Don’t Let Go”, while clever around the Nintendo sounding “50 Circles Around”. Exotic and tribal sounds surround her on “Innocent Victim” whle she rocks with confidence on “This Shell” and the clever “Feel Flows” Soulful struts.
Angela Verbrugge takes a page from the Dave Frishberg way of life, with some clever and swinging originals, teamed with Dave Say/sax, Miles Black/p, Jodi Proznick/b and Joel Fountain/dr. She tangos with Say’s soprano sax on “Not Here, Not Now” and swings easy on the tasty title piece. The fun part of the album are the wry lyrical observations that Lorraine Feather used to be famous for. She’s a hoot on “Corn on the Cob”, hep for “Mr. Right”, street smart for “Enough’s Enough” and “This Is Manhattan” and looks good in a beret for “Je Ne Veux Pas Te Dire Bonsoir”. Here voice can range from Broadway to Blossom Dearie, going from Veronica to Betty like a vintage Archie Comic. Is she coming to LA?