Diane Hoffman - Do I Love You

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 2018
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 58:56
Size: 138,0 MB
Art: Front

(3:26)  1. Do I Love You
(4:19)  2. Crazy in the Heart
(5:13)  3. Something in Your Smile
(5:16)  4. Small Day Tomorrow
(4:27)  5. Devil May Care
(2:56)  6. I Like You You're Nice
(3:47)  7. Can't Get out of This Mood
(4:27)  8. You Are out of My Life
(3:39)  9. I'm Gonna Go Fishin'
(4:44) 10. Mad About the Boy
(5:32) 11. Love Dance
(4:18) 12. When You're in Love
(2:57) 13. Kindly
(3:48) 14. I Like It Here

Vocalist and visual artist Diane Hoffman will release her third album entitled Do I Love You on October 9, 2018. On the recording, Hoffman once again chose to feature drummer/percussionist Ulysses Owens, Jr. with whom she previously worked and, who for this project, produced and assembled a formidable ensemble that includes Billy Test, piano; Jacob Kelberman , guitar; Yasushi Nakamura, bass; Yoshi Waki, bass; Daniel Dickinson, tenor saxophone; Vitaly Golavnev, trumpet; Erich Miller, trombone; and Joseph Doubleday, vibraphone. Hoffman, a formally trained visual artist, has had her work exhibited extensively throughout North America and has maintained an equal balance between her painting and music. As a vocalist, she has studied with notable entertainers such as Anita Darian, Bernard Fisher and Barbara Maier Gustern, and has performed across the eastern United States in a range of music venues, performing arts centers, cruises, and festivals, in addition to having appeared on radio and television. On her newest project, Hoffman chose to cover numerous standards including “Do I Love You,” “I’m Gonna Go Fishin’,” “Crazy In The Heart,” and “Small Day Tomorrow,” among others, which are brought to life by her rich vocals paired with the hard-swinging ensemble led by Owens. She also selected several less known songs written by the late actress and vocalist Anita Darian as a result of their connection. The pieces offer a nice compliment to the classic repertoire and hold a special meaning to her; the songs include “You Are Out Of My Life,” “When You’re In Love,” and “Kindly.” Do I Love You was inspired by a commitment to share aspects of Hoffman’s personal life. In preparation, the singer tirelessly searched catalogs of songs to select lyrics that deeply touched her. She felt strongly that it was important that listeners share a personal connection to the story painted through the lyrics, and that the words chosen needed to be entirely authentic for both her and her audience. Hoffman states “If I am able to give truth to the handling of the lyrics, then my mission as a singer is successful.” She adds “To give love, to be in love, and to hold onto love is to spread wings that fly and lift your feet right off the ground. This CD takes on the ecstasy of love, the secrets of private love, and the loss of great love.” Hoffman is dedicating Do I Love You to her first grandchild whose eyes are just opening to the love that surrounds her. The album was recorded at Big Orange Sheep Studios in Brooklyn, NY (March 28-29, 2018) and Mixed & Mastered by Dave Darlington at Bass Hit Studios (May 30-31 and June 28, 2018). It will be available on all major music platforms on October 9, 2018. ~ Are Group https://news.allaboutjazz.com/performance-and-visual-artist-diane-hoffman-to-release-third-album-do-i-love-you-produced-by-ulysses-owens-jr-featuring-a-dynamic-ensemble.php

Do I Love You

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Diane Hoffman - Someone In Love

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2000
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 46:16
Size: 106,9 MB
Art: Front

(3:08)  1. If I Should Lose You
(5:23)  2. I Didn't Know About You
(2:57)  3. I'll Close My Eyes
(4:07)  4. I'm Old Fashioned
(4:23)  5. I Ain't Got Nothin' But The Blues
(4:16)  6. Come Fly With Me
(4:35)  7. Never Let Me Go
(2:57)  8. Like Someone in Love
(4:06)  9. Don't Worry 'Bout Me
(3:48) 10. Come Closer To Me
(4:15) 11. There's A Lull In My Life
(2:14) 12. I Wish I Knew

Diane Hoffman is a multi talented powerhouse ... at a recent performance a fan remarked, "You can just see and feel the music moving through you." Diane is a truly inspiring performer. Her disciplined good taste pleases aficionados and her emotional directness stirs audiences to their feet. Diane grew her talent the old fashioned way...through hard work. Her grandfather was a much beloved musician in Cambridge, Mass. As a young teen, Diane made her way through the Harvard Square coffee houses and backwater juke joints. She was always an individualist, striving to find her own way. She sought the unusual, the true. She designed and made her own clothes. She set out for California and earned a BFA at the California School of Arts. She spent a year in independent study near Patzcuaro, Mexico. All the while she played her guitar, wrote and sang. She exhibited her paintings for more than fifteen years and is now represented in the U.S and internationally. Seeking more direct audience contact than the art world could provide, Diane moved from the gallery to the stage. She joined a large chorale, studied with a Cantor and NYC Opera member, and to this day enjoys performing the great liturgical works of Brahms, Bach, Handel and company. But, Diane's greatest love was and is the jazz song. 

She honed her skills with members of the Carnegie Jazz Ensemble, The Count Basie Orchestra, Mannes College, and the many gifted sidemen who have graced her trios and quartets. Diane's singing is unique, nuanced and textured. She searches for truth in the lyric, the phrasing, the tempo, and in the playful spontaneity of the moment. Musicians who accompany Diane always have a good time. Even her two grown sons love to play with her, one on the tenor and the other on drums. Diane is a tireless and driven musician. Her repertoire is always expanding and her renditions always growing and evolving. In short, she is a real jazz musician. Diane performs regularly in the NYC area and in the summer on the LI winery scene. She appeared on the SS Norway Jazz Cruise in 1999 and 2001, on the MS Maasdam Jazz cruise in 2002 and 2003 and on the MS Zenith in 2004. http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/dianehoffman

Someone In Love

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Diane Hoffman - My Little French Dancer

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 47:49
Size: 109.5 MB
Styles: Jazz vocals
Year: 2007
Art: Front

[4:12] 1. Gone With The Wind
[3:05] 2. Well You Needn't
[3:52] 3. Close Enough For Love
[5:31] 4. When Love Was All We Had
[4:02] 5. Blackberry Winter
[4:24] 6. You're My Thrill
[3:30] 7. Sunday In New York
[5:01] 8. Two Years Of Torture
[4:35] 9. Yellow Days
[4:50] 10. Farewell, Noelle
[4:43] 11. When Did You Leave Heaven

Vocalist Diane Hoffman constructs a second independently produced disc of standards, interpretations, and one original, a hip, reflective homage dedicated to a deceased French dancer friend named Noelle. Hoffman's voice is seasoned and admittedly similar in phrasing to that of Carmen McRae. She honed her artistry over many years, coast hopping from Cambridge, MA, to California and then New York City. During this period she played folk guitar, became an accomplished mural painter, and a choral singer. Along the way she recruited the excellent pianist and arranger Oliver Von Essen, tenor saxophonist Jerry Weldon, and on four cuts for this effort, guitarist John Hart. Hoffman sounds better as the program moves along, especially on the ballads. Perhaps taking her time to enunciate properly is more to her advantage, as interpretations of "When Love Was All We Had" or the superior take of "Blackberry Winter," featuring Hart, readily displays. Another slow song "When Did You Leave Heaven?" showcases a melodic Weldon, Von Essen on organ and Don Militello on Fender Rhodes, making for interesting sonic contrasts. Her best swinger is the organ-driven take of "Sunday in New York," with Weldon at his swinging best. The singer is also fond of Brazilian rhythms, as heard on the upbeat version of "Gone with the Wind," at a similar pace as the samba-flavored, book-of -Billie Holiday (inexcusably spelled Billy in the notes) evergreen "You're My Thrill," and the light bossa "Yellow Days" with an inspired Hart. On the low end, Hoffman's perceptive imprecision shows up during McRae's famous lyrics on Thelonious Monk's "Well, You Needn't," and there are intonation problems during "Close Enough for Love." This is not a groundbreaking or ultimate recording for Hoffman, but her talent and compatibility with excellent sidemen is easy to enjoy. The third time should be the charm. ~Michael G. Nastos

My Little French Dancer

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