Carla Helmbrecht - One For My Baby

Styles: Vocal 
Year: 1994
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:14
Size: 141,7 MB
Art: Front

(5:57)  1. It Never Entered My Mind
(4:36)  2. Mood Indigo
(3:30)  3. Dream A Little Dream Of Me
(5:48)  4. Love For Sale
(6:23)  5. One For My Baby
(4:56)  6. Where Do You Start?
(2:52)  7. Just In Time
(8:10)  8. Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most
(4:29)  9. Moonlight In Vermont
(4:50) 10. Song To A Seagull
(5:06) 11. Sweet Angel
(4:32) 12. Fly Me To The Moon

Carla Helmbrecht, a new name, starts off her set quite successfully with one of the saddest ballads ever written, Rodgers And Hart's "It Never Entered My Mind." After pulling that one off, the highly appealing singer gradually lightens up the mood with "Mood Indigo" and "Dream a Little Dream of Me" before successfully plunging into "Love for Sale," a song with Cole Porter lyrics that still sounds modern and a touch scary today. Helmbrecht does not improvise all that much and her scatting is mostly worked out in advance but her expressive powers are quite high and she is at her best on ballads. Her octet includes pianist Frank Mantooth, Kim Richmond on alto and clarinet, trumpeter Clay Jenkins and trombonist Chris Seiter; they all get opportunites to solo. Helmbrecht closes down her memorable program with a funky version of "Moonlight in Vermont" and a salsified "Fly Me to the Moon." ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/one-for-my-baby-mw0000648236

Personnel:  Vocals – Carla Helmbrecht; Alto Saxophone – Kim Richmond; Clarinet – Kim Richmond; Drums – Steve Meador; Flugelhorn – Clay Jenkins; Piano – Frank Mantooth; Trombone – Chris Seiter; Trumpet – Clay Jenkins

One For My Baby

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Carla Helmbrecht - Be Cool Be Kind

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2001
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 58:00
Size: 133,3 MB
Art: Front

(4:46)  1. Be Cool Be Kind
(4:14)  2. Later For Love
(4:56)  3. Easy Love
(4:55)  4. So Many Stars
(2:51)  5. Down With Love
(5:32)  6. Even Still
(5:01)  7. A Miracle
(5:20)  8. Windmills Of Your Mind
(4:50)  9. The Touch Of Your Lips
(5:07) 10. How I Remember You
(4:51) 11. (Song For) A Rainy Afternoon
(5:30) 12. The Party's Over

Once again San Francisco is home for a fine singer. Carla Helmbrecht is a summa cum laude graduate from that school of singers who believe that in order to deliver her special message, there is no need to indulge in vocal tricks, become over emotional or even overdo dynamics by major shifts between singing loud and louder. Rather, her approach is cool, languid, laid back (as distinguished from laid out) and gently fervent. On her second release for Heart Music with a play list that shows an ambivalent attitude, Helmbrecht stays away from up tempo rhythms, living comfortably with the slow and medium pace. The most excitable she gets is on "Easy Love" which she wrote with Peter Horvath. This track also reveals that she has a cute side about her. Helmbrecht's style results in pleasant off the beaten track Interpretations. Her "The Party's Over" which one normally hears with extensive emoting comes off matter of fact, "it's over and done with so get used to it", in Helmbrecht's vocal hands. Contrast this with the version to say Anita O'Day's. Jazz vocalizing allows plenty of room for both treatments. Helmbrecht has managed to convince outstanding jazz musicians to join her for this session.

In addition to the basic trio headed by Horvath's piano, invited guests make important contributions. On "Even Still", Ernie Watts sax offers dramatic counterpoint to Helmbrecht's plaintive rendering. Larry Koonse's guitar and Clay Jenkins' muted and open trumpet are delectably conspicuous on the "The Party's Over". Horvath's piano introduction sets the scene for a lovely "The Touch of Your Lips" as Joe LaBarbera's seductive brushes provide a soft angel hair like rhythmic underpinning.

This is an outstanding track. The lyrics are printed in the liner notes. But the producer let the graphic and design people run wild with the color combinations. Some of the words are red on a gray background which make them virtually impossible to read. Oh well, albums are bought for the quality of performances not the quality of the color layouts. And this album should be added to one's collection. ~ Dave Nathan https://www.allaboutjazz.com/be-cool-be-kind-carla-helmbrecht-heart-music-review-by-dave-nathan.php?width=1920

Be Cool Be Kind

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Carla Helmbrecht & Akio Sasajima - Quiet Intentions

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 57:26
Size: 131.5 MB
Styles: Vocal jazz
Year: 2013
Art: Front

[5:16] 1. Skylark
[3:54] 2. You Don't Know What Love Is
[4:42] 3. Girl Crazy: Embraceable You
[5:54] 4. How Insensitive
[4:30] 5. Bewitched Bothered And Bewildered
[5:14] 6. Angel Eyes
[3:45] 7. Stardust
[5:19] 8. Cry Me A River
[4:12] 9. A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square
[4:57] 10. That's All
[3:46] 11. My One And Only Love
[5:51] 12. Two For The Road

Grammy-nominated vocalist and song-writer, Carla Helmbrecht, began her love affair with music at the age of eight. A native of Wisconsin, Carla was raised in a large music-loving family and had an inherent desire for music. It was her father who introduced her to jazz, and it was not uncommon for the entire family to spend endless evenings making music. By age 13, she was singing professionally and continued her musical studies through high school and college. Her earliest jazz influences included Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Julie London, Count Basie, and Dave Brubeck. Later influences included Shirley Horn, Nancy Wilson, and Miles Davis.

While studying Speech-Language Pathology at Texas Tech University, Carla sang with the TTU Jazz Ensemble I under direction of Alan Shinn. There, she had the opportunity to perform with and open for jazz notables, such as Tuck and Patti, the Yellowjackets, Louie Bellson, and Tony Campizi. In 1993 she was awarded "best vocal performance" by IAGE.

Carla’s experience in Speech-Language Pathologist specializing in the area of voice has given her a unique understanding of the A&P of vocal use. She has frequently worked with professional singers in helping them to rehabilitate their voice, to achieve balance between vocal efficiency and expression, and to have longevity with this beautiful but fragile instrument – the voice.

Carla recently completed a new duo project with guitarist Akio Sasajima. The project, QUIET INTENTIONS, is a guitar + vocal duo.

Quiet Intentions

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