Time: 56:37
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2014
Styles: Jazz/Pop Vocals
Art: Front
01. I Wonder (Feat. Chris Andrew) (3:41)
02. She Thinks I Still Care (Feat. Chris Andrew) (5:50)
03. Maybe This Time (Feat. Chris Andrew) (5:35)
04. Dream A Little Dream Of Me (Feat. Chris Andrew) (3:20)
05. Folsom Prison Blues (Feat. Chris Andrew) (3:52)
06. My Baby Just Cares For Me (Feat. Chris Andrew) (3:14)
07. Simple Song (Feat. Chris Andrew) (4:19)
08. Exactly Like You (Feat. Chris Andrew) (2:39)
09. You Don't Know Me (Feat. Chris Andrew) (5:50)
10. I'm An Errand Boy For Rhythm (Feat. Chris Andrew) (4:08)
11. Going Home (Feat. Chris Andrew) (4:30)
12. Look For The Silver Lining (Feat. Chris Andrew) (3:41)
13. This Time The Dreams On Me (Feat. Chris Andrew) (5:52)
Johnny Summers is a triple threat musician – trumpet player, singer, and song writer/arranger. He’s from Calgary, Alberta, Canada. In addition to having played and sung at various venues, he founded the Calgary Jazz Orchestra, the first permanent repertory large jazz ensemble in Canada. It was formed ten years ago and is still going strong.
On his Piano Sessions, Volume 1 CD, Summers collaborated with pianist Chris Andrew for an intimate, smoky bar album that is mellow in all the right ways. Various guest artists are imported for some of the tracks but the overall idea of intimacy is preserved throughout. That said and the fact that are no drums, might fool you into thinking there’s no rhythm; but Andrew provides plenty of it, helped by Sheldon Valleau’s mandolin playing on two tracks.
Interestingly enough, the album is not all jazz standards, since there are country & western tunes and one Broadway song via Hollywood. That latter piece is “Maybe this Time” from the film version of Cabaret, such a success that it’s now incorporated into many stage productions of the show. The country & western songs are quite different from one another. One is “She Still Thinks I Care,” the other one is “You Don’t Know Me.” The former is given a barroom flavor by the piano, the latter is accorded pop anthem treatment. Both are sung and played by just Summers and Andrew, which doesn’t ever seem like a deficiency of forces.
The albums quieter moments are among the best. The disc ends with a poignant rendition of “Going Home,” which proves that you don’t have to play fast and loud to make a point. Summers puts down the trumpet to sing his own composition, “Simple Song.” I think it’s the best thing on this disc, a very appealing love song that is kept, as the title implies, plain and simple, direct and moving. I can hear other singers covering it in my mind, which doesn’t mean Summers doesn’t give it a good reading, just that it’s a good enough song that others should want it in their playbooks. As a performer, Summers’ trumpet playing is beyond reproach but his singing could use a little polish.
The recorded sound is also simple and direct. Vocals and instrumentals are presented realistically, with just the right warmth so the clarity is never in doubt. ~Rad Bennett
On his Piano Sessions, Volume 1 CD, Summers collaborated with pianist Chris Andrew for an intimate, smoky bar album that is mellow in all the right ways. Various guest artists are imported for some of the tracks but the overall idea of intimacy is preserved throughout. That said and the fact that are no drums, might fool you into thinking there’s no rhythm; but Andrew provides plenty of it, helped by Sheldon Valleau’s mandolin playing on two tracks.
Interestingly enough, the album is not all jazz standards, since there are country & western tunes and one Broadway song via Hollywood. That latter piece is “Maybe this Time” from the film version of Cabaret, such a success that it’s now incorporated into many stage productions of the show. The country & western songs are quite different from one another. One is “She Still Thinks I Care,” the other one is “You Don’t Know Me.” The former is given a barroom flavor by the piano, the latter is accorded pop anthem treatment. Both are sung and played by just Summers and Andrew, which doesn’t ever seem like a deficiency of forces.
The albums quieter moments are among the best. The disc ends with a poignant rendition of “Going Home,” which proves that you don’t have to play fast and loud to make a point. Summers puts down the trumpet to sing his own composition, “Simple Song.” I think it’s the best thing on this disc, a very appealing love song that is kept, as the title implies, plain and simple, direct and moving. I can hear other singers covering it in my mind, which doesn’t mean Summers doesn’t give it a good reading, just that it’s a good enough song that others should want it in their playbooks. As a performer, Summers’ trumpet playing is beyond reproach but his singing could use a little polish.
The recorded sound is also simple and direct. Vocals and instrumentals are presented realistically, with just the right warmth so the clarity is never in doubt. ~Rad Bennett
Piano Sessions Vol. 1