(Reprinted from November 2024 issue of New York City Jazz Record. Photo: Courtesy of Janis Seigel)
It was just a coincidence, singer Janis Siegel explained at her album launch at Blue Note last September. Both Siegel and Yaron Gershovsky—she a founding member of the chart-topping vocal quartet The Manhattan Transfer and he its longtime pianist/musical director—had both worked at different times with legendary Broadway composer Cy Coleman. With The Manhattan Transfer now in the past (the group ended its extraordinary 50-year career with a farewell concert in L.A. last December), they looked to explore this musically intriguing connection. In June, they released The Colors Of My Life: The Music of Cy Coleman (Club44 Records).
Before the highly decorated Coleman made his fortune on Broadway, he excelled as a jazz pianist. So it’s not surprising that he would ask Gershovsky to serve as vocal arranger for his Tony-winning show City of Angels, or that he’d tap Siegel to sing in his concert piece, “Songs for the New Millennium” at the Kennedy Center in 2002, his final collaboration with lyricists Alan and Marilyn Bergman. Coleman, who passed 20 years ago this month, was right to trust them with his harmonically rich, rhythmically sophisticated compositions.
They selected 10 varied numbers for this smart, finely curated collection. Throughout these tracks, the pair continue to unearth new understandings of Coleman’s music, as on the first, the 1960s hit “I’ve Got Your Number”, or the noir ballad “With Every Breath I Take”, or the crooner favorites “Witchcraft” and “The Best Is Yet To Come”. One of Coleman’s most-recognized tunes, “Playboy’s Theme”, is a standout for its close, Transfer-like vocal harmonies, featuring Siegel alongside delightful guest Aubrey Johnson (who also joined Siegel and Gershovsky at the Blue Note gig). Finally, they close the record with the title track, its inherently nostalgic vibe shifting into one of celebration, with a gentle Latin pulse and bright strings, as Siegel scats happily into the fade.
The ever-touring Youn Sun Nah brings her distinctive vocal style to Joe’s Pub (Nov. 13) as part of her launch for Elles (Warner Music), her 12th album to date and her first duo record (with pianist Jon Cowherd). Within this highly personal format, Nah cycles through tunes by 10 ground-breaking singers, each an artist who influenced the inventive vocalist’s own work. These pieces necessarily cover a lot of ground stylistically, ranging as they do from Edith Piaf’s cabaret classic “La Foule” to an introspective version of Grace Slick’s “White Rabbit” to a gut-wrenching take on Björk’s “Cocoon” to a super-scatting rendition of Portuguese singer Maria João’s “Coisas Da Terra”. Beyond these diverse singers, she channels some iconic jazz vocalists, too, like Sarah Vaughan, on a deeply felt “My Funny Valentine”; Nina Simone on a subtly defiant “Feelin’ Good”; and Sheila Jordan on a strongly declarative “Baltimore Oriole”. These performances are a fabulous display of Nah’s interpretative talents and a fitting homage to the historic singers she lauds.
Listen here: Madeleine Peyroux releases her first album in six years, Let’s Walk (Thirty Tigers), a completely self-written opus the uses jazz, folk, gospel, blues, Americana, chamber pop, and Latin rhythms to deliver pertinent social messages. Peyroux is at NJPAC (Nov. 16). Jazzmeia Horn brings her virtuosic chops and an insightful perspective to Messages (Empress Legacy Records), a pared-down showcase for her exquisite sound and impeccable phrasing. She’ll be at Jazz Forum in Tarrytown (Nov. 29-30). And in a second surprise, Kurt Elling released an impromptu album Wildflowers, Vol. 2, via Bandcamp just days after recording it on Sept. 30. It’s a gorgeous follow-on to the first edition, released in a similarly spontaneous fashion in August.
Fall gigs: Django Reinhardt NY Festival celebrates 25 years with vocalists Tatiana Eva-Marie, Ute Lemper, and Lucy Yeghiazaryan at Birdland (Nov. 5-9). The 2023 Ella Fitzgerald contest winner April Varner plays Mezzrow (Nov. 10), then Au Bar 56 (Nov. 15, 22) and The Roxy Hotel’s Django Jazz Club (Nov. 25). Cecile McLorin Salvant will take Zankel Hall by storm on Nov. 16. Gabrielle Cavassa guests with the Joshua Redman Group at JALC’s Rose Theater (Nov. 15-16). Sheila Jordan will front her consummate trio at Birdland Theater (Nov. 17). Lines of Light Vocal Ensemble, with Amirtha Kidambi, Miriam el-Hajli, isabel crespo pardo, Shara Lunon and Cleo Reed, will premiere at Roulette (Nov. 19). And finally, the next Sassy Award winner will be determined at NJPAC (Nov 24).