If you have any of his highly hip releases, you know that Mark Winkler knows how to write as well as sing a tune. This time around, he’s put his pen down and did some clever detective work by investigating the songbook of the late Laura Nyro, who wrote some incredibly intriguing and sophisticated material in (mostly) the 60s and 70s before dropping out of the music scene and leaving this earth way too soon in 1997. Winkler takes her innovative tunes, some of them quite popular, and gives his Bobby Troup hepness of a voice to arrangements that go from intimate piano duets to bopping sextets.
Supported by LA Cats like “Eli Brueggemann-Eric Reed/p, Larry Koonse/g, Peter Buck/dr, Dan Lutz/b and Bob Sheppard/reeds, Winkler delivers insightful an subtly swinging takes of material like “And When I Die” and “Stoned Soul Picnic”; songs that were cute hits in the Boomer Years, but deserve a second chance for Generation Y to appreciate. Intriguing material that is a bit more arcane, such as “Time and Love” and “Buy and Sell” have some fascinating reworking of harmonies and mood; Winkler delivers these with the savvy of a Rolex salesman at 42nd and Broadway, while a pair of duets with Eric Davis close the disc with an agonizingly intimate mood. Another in the plus column for Winkler’s excellent catalogue. Make sure you see him in person as well; he’ll be at Vitello’s June 6, and you won’t want to miss it. www.vitellosrestaurant.com
Café Pacific Records