Review: Nicole Henry | Time To Love Again
There is nothing more explosive or exciting than being a part of the audience when Nicole Henry takes the stage to give us a part of her. For the initiate, be clear, I take nothing from her recordings, but they are merely a great introduction to the strength and boldness of her performance. Always in command, be it stage or studio, she interprets every song with passion. Last night was one of those nights where one felt the electricity surging throughout the room as she unveiled her latest release, Time To Love Again. To say I was engaged and enthralled is an understatement!
Choosing nine songs to cover from across the decades and musical landscape, she tapped Anthony Newley & Leslie Bricusse, David Nichtern, Sade, Buffy St. Marie, James Taylor, Joan Armatrading, Dimitri Tiomkin & Ned Washington, Richard Rodgers & Lorenz Hart, and Stevie Wonder to be her muses. Once again Nicole emerges triumphant, illuminating another facet of her immense talent. Here she blends rock, R&B and jazz standards, taking us on a spiritual journey to soothe our savage beast and releases us calmly back into the world with grace.
Those of us who came of age during the original release of these songs, will instantly recognize their purveyor, be it Nina Simone, Maria Muldaur, Elvis Presley, Johnny Mathis, Roberta Flack or Newley. Regardless of the version that stokes your memory, there is no comparison as her individuality remains above reproach and the roar of applause. Feeling Good introduces the album as it opens your heart. In between she imbues us with wonderful arrangements of Midnight At The Oasis, Your Smiling Face, and I Didn’t Know What Time It Was. The lineup is impeccable as she continues with Is It A Crime, Until It’s Time For You To Go, Wild As The Wind and Love and Affection. As the set is near completion, Nicole leaves us Overjoyed with the experience of her. For those of us who have forsaken the beat in our chest for other pastures, this is a modest reminder to unlock our hearts and embrace it’s Time To Love Again.
If you fall in love with her on record, leave the world behind, submerge yourself in the music and take serious stock of this lady who transcends that very high bar set years ago. She will make you dance and shout and move your body to the groove, or simply sit and ponder the lyrics as you hear it through a different filter. She will evoke emotions you’ve forgotten and erupt memories you hold close. These select composers and lyricists have added to the canon of great American songs, and it is evident that her innovative arrangements and delivery bestows upon her the privilege to stand shoulder to shoulder with her peers. I implore you to see Nicole Henry live and be amazed by this beautiful force of nature.
carl anthony | notorious jazz | 3.12.22
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Léon Clément Doucet was born on April 9, 1895 in Brussels, Belgium. For a time he studied at the city’s Conservatoire under Arthur De Greef, who had been a pupil of Franz Liszt.
His formal training was classical, though as he traveled to the United States where he gained some influence from jazz. Some of his arrangements are still played today, including Chopinata, a jazz tribute to several works by Frédéric Chopin.
After returning to Europe, Clément became the house pianist at the Parisian cabaret Le Boeuf sur le Toit, succeeding Jean Wiéner. He and Wiéner formed a piano duo that spanned 15 years from 1924 to 1939. They performed over 2000 concerts and made over 100 recordings of jazz, blues, and classical music.
They also made a small number of recordings in which they accompanied French chansonniers. These include ten sides with Maurice Chevalier, Édith Piaf, Yvonne George, Jean Sablon and Germaine Sablon and others.
Pianist Clément Doucet transitioned at the age of 55 on October 15, 1950 in his hometown.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Phillip Robert Lee was born on April 8, 1943 in London, England and studied guitar with Ike Isaacs as a teenager. He was a member of the National Youth Jazz Orchestra, and performed at the 1960 Antibes Jazz Festival.
Later in the 1960s he played with John Williams and Graham Collier, as well as in a band with Bob Stuckey, Dudu Pukwana, and John Marshall.
During the 1970s, Phil moved into jazz-rock playing in bands such as Gilgamesh and Axel with Tony Coe and with Michael Garrick, Henry Lowther, and John Stevens.
Lee recorded Twice Upon a Time in 1987) with Jeff Clyne. Later in his career he worked with Gordon Beck, Andres Boiarsky, Benny Goodman, Lena Horne, Marian Montgomery, Annie Ross, and the London Jazz Orchestra.
Guitarist Phil Lee continues his exploration of jazz music.
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The Quarantined Jazz Voyager
As the Jazz Voyager continue to remain masked and socially distant, I have ventured out to a couple of events. I am, however, not surprised by the number of people who are unmasked and congregating as if the pandemic is over. This virus keeps mutating and though you may only get mildly ill, you will be ill and it will take a toll on your body, so protect yourself and others.
This week I am pulling out a classic album that shows this vocalist at her best delivering twelve compositions that were recorded on two separate occasions, December 5 & 16, 1957 in Los Angeles, California titled Carmen for Cool Ones. Released in 1958 by Carmen McRae on the Decca Records label, the sessions were arranged and directed by cellist Fred Katz.
The liner notes were scribed by Benny Golson and Burt Korall, and the photographs were taken by Wendy Hilty.
Track Listing | 36:15
- All the Things You Are (Oscar Hammerstein II, Jerome Kern) ~ 2:26
- A Shoulder to Cry On (Chuck Darwin, Paulette Girard) ~ 3:53
- Any Old Time (Artie Shaw) ~ 3:10
- Weak for the Man (Jeanne Burns) ~ 4:08
- What’s New? (Johnny Burke, Bob Haggart) ~ 2:29
- I Get a Kick Out of You (Cole Porter) ~ 2:15
- What Can I Say After I Say I’m Sorry? (Walter Donaldson, Abe Lyman) ~ 1:47
- Without a Word of Warning (Mack Gordon, Harry Revel) ~ 3:20
- You Are Mine (Ted Snyder, Sam Lewis, Joe Young) ~ 1:55
- If I Were a Bell” (Frank Loesser) ~ 3:27
- The Night We Called It a Day (Tom Adair, Matt Dennis) ~ 4:27
- I Remember Clifford (Benny Golson, Jon Hendricks) ~ 2:58
- Carmen McRae ~ vocals
- Fred Katz ~ arranger, conductor, cello
- Ike Isaacs ~ double bass (except track 6)
- Specs Wright ~ drums (exc. track 6)
- Harry Klee ~ flute solo
- George W. Smith ~ clarinet
- Justin Gordon, Mahlon Clark ~ bass clarinet
- Buddy Collette ~ flute, alto saxophone
- George W. Smith ~ clarinet
- Justin Gordon ~ bass clarinet
- Warren Webb oboe
- Joe Marino ~ piano
- Joseph R. Gibbons ~ guitar
- Thirteen unknown string players
- Joe Marino, John T. Williams ~ piano, celeste
- Larry Bunker, Frank Flynn ~ vibraphone, marimba
- Pete Candoli, Ray Linn ~ trumpet
- Vincent DeRosa ~ French horn
- Bob Enevoldsen, Milt Bernhart ~ trombone
- Tommy Johnson ~ tuba
- Calvin Jackson ~ piano
- Billy Bean ~ guitar
- Red Mitchell ~ double bass
- Larry Bunker ~ drums
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Alexander von Schlippenbach was born into the Schlippenbach noble family on April 7, 1938 in Berlin, Germany. He started to play piano from the age of eight and went on to study composition at Cologne under Bernd Alois Zimmermann. While studying he started to play with Manfred Schoof.
At the age of 28 he founded the Globe Unity Orchestra. In 1988, he founded the Berlin Contemporary Jazz Orchestra, a big band that has over the years had, among others, Willem Breuker, Paul Lovens, Misha Mengelberg, Evan Parker, Schlippenbach’s wife Aki Takase and Kenny Wheeler.
Alexander has produced various recordings and worked for German radio channels. He played in a free jazz trio with saxophonist Evan Parker and drummer Paul Lovens with many players of the European free jazz community.
In 1994, he was awarded the Albert Mangelsdorff prize. He recorded 43 albums as a leader, eighteen with Globe Unity Orchestra, and another thirty-three with numerous others. Since the 1990s, pianist Alexander Von Schlippenbach has explored the work of more traditional jazz composers such as Jelly Roll Morton or Thelonious Monk, recording the latter’s complete works which were released on CD as Monk’s Casino.
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