Record Reviews

CAROL MENNIE ~ I`M NOT A SOMETIME THING CDM 1004 (Barcode: 616892610120) ~ USA ~ Jazz Recorded: 1999 Released: 2004 This debut album by US singer Carol MennieFind albums by this artist, wife and life companion of guitarist extraordinaire Dom MinasiFind albums by this artist, is full of surprises. Stepping into the domain of extraordinary Jazz vocal heritage can be extremely risky and many vocalists failed miserably while trying. Mennie manages to avoid the precarious trap by doing the only thing an artist should do – rather that copying prior achievements by others she simply does her own thing. Her deep, sexy and seductive alto is clear and strong enough to carry any tune and she chose material that suits her vocal abilities perfectly. Of course a part of the credit goes to Minasi, who arranged the tunes and was the album’s musical director, as well as to the wonderful cast of contributing musicians, which includes Minasi’s “regulars” bassist Ken FilianoFind albums by this artist and cellist Tomas UrlichFind albums by this artist and other musical friends like Patience HigginsFind albums by this artist on reeds, Valery PonomarevFind albums by this artist (ex-Art BlakeyFind albums by this artist) on trumpet, Michael Jefry StevensFind albums by this artist on piano, Jay RosenFind albums by this artist on drums and Tom McGrathFind albums by this artist on percussion. Minasi’s guitar work is, as usual, superb, showing his deep knowledge of the guitar tradition and ability to play “straightforward” and still be unique. The material includes some favorite standards and five original Minasi’s songs (both music and lyrics), that are as good as the standards. The singer can be both deeply lyrical on the slow ballads and funny and humorous on the up-tempo songs, preserving her personal touch with elegance and gusto. The album is full of precious moments, beautiful instrumental solos and touching vocal delivery, which together create a piece of music that doesn’t try to be pretentious, yet is interesting, intelligent and highly unusual at all times. This is a kind of album that works both in rainy evenings and sunny mornings – a music for all seasons. I truly enjoyed this and honestly await Carol’s next album, hopefully sometime soon.

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