Vocalist/composer Lorraine Feather is sort of a Tom Waits-Mort Sahl kind of jazzer. She writes songs about people and issues that normally fall through the cracks and gives an insight into the foibles of life in a thoughtful, winsome and yet swinging way. Here, she teams up with Russell Ferrante-Shelly Berg-Dave Grusin/p, Grant Geissman-Eddie Arkin/g, Michael Valerio/b and Michael Shapiro-Gregg Fields/dr, but what makes her sound all her own is the inclusion of violinist Charles Bisharat on half of the tunes that gives material like “Off-Center” and the reflective “The Staircase” a folksy quality. Bisharat can also deliver some moody moods, as Feather goes Miss Havisham on “Disastrous Consequences” with Ferrante. “Wait For It” has a Jane Austen quality with Gruisin at the helm, the band snaps along with Feather on the highly hip “I’d Be Down With That.” Cerebral, yet also celebratory stuff.
Jazzed Media