Martha Lorin - Don't Slam That Door! The Many Moods Of Martha Lorin

Styles: Jazz, Vocal
Year: 2008
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 60:18
Size: 138,9 MB
Art: Front

(2:16)  1. The Best Is Yet To come
(3:57)  2. Rain Song
(4:29)  3. New York State Of Mind
(5:43)  4. Close Your Eyes
(2:49)  5. Coney Island
(3:03)  6. Last Night When We Were Young
(3:39)  7. You're Changed
(1:59)  8. Don't Slam That Door
(3:00)  9. Ill Wind
(5:11) 10. Low Down Blues
(4:33) 11. We Two
(3:40) 12. Let's Begin Again
(3:19) 13. Nerves
(3:17) 14. Remember (For Shelly Mann)
(4:21) 15. Close Enough For Love
(4:51) 16. Come Walk With Me

"Martha Lorin has developed into one of the most emotive singers to hit the jazz scene." Growing up in Pueblo, Colorado, Martha Lorin found herself at a crossroads of diverse cultures. Martha's early vocal development was nourished by two generations, her Welsh grandmother, Sarah Dalton, a highly touted popular singer of the 1920's, and her jazz pianist/singer/songwriter mother, Margaret Dalton.

Martha had her first club gig at age 19 at Enrico Banucci's "Hungry Eye" in San Francisco, where she met long-term mentor, pianist Shelly Robin.  After the tragic loss of her husband, Capt. Bruce Walker (shot down in Viet Nam and still MIA) Martha moved to Germany with their one year old baby girl for two years. Upon returning to the U.S. she completed her B.A. in American Literature at the University of Maryland, after which she moved to San Francisco to resume her singing career. 

Martha's first solo album, "The Best Is Yet To Come," was co-produced by Joni Mitchell's producer and sound engineer, Henry Lewy. After its release Martha toured Japan and the Philippines, and then spent a year in Los Angeles where she met and collaborated with pianist/songwriter Frank Collett. Several of those compositions are included on Martha's new collection, "Don't Slam That Door." New York Times music critic John Wilson says of these collaborations that Martha's "lyrics, with music by Frank Collett, stand up well in the company of such established gems as Strayhorn's "Day Dream" and "Easy Living" by Ranger/Robbins. More....http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/marthalorin3

Don't Slam That Door ! The Many Moods Of Martha Lorin

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Martha Lorin - Come Walk With Me

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 2000
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 71:15
Size: 163,4 MB
Art: Front

(5:43)  1. Close Your Eyes
(4:51)  2. Come Walk With Me
(4:19)  3. Carefully Taught
(4:47)  4. Let's Face The Music And Dance
(3:45)  5. The Island
(6:09)  6. You've Got A Friend
(5:38)  7. On Green Dolphin Street
(3:57)  8. Rain Song
(5:36)  9. Detour Ahead
(5:04) 10. Just A Sittin' & A Rockin'
(5:18) 11. Every Time We Say Goodbye
(5:10) 12. Low Down Blues
(4:37) 13. Cinnamon And Clove
(1:41) 14. Lush Life ( Intro)
(4:32) 15. Lush Life

Chicago's Southport label has brought different groupings of instrumentalists into the recording studio to back Martha Lorin for her second album. Only superb pianist Mike Black appears on all the cuts with Lorin. To Ms Lorin and Southport's credit, they avoid the temptation of limiting the musical agenda to the usual standards by offering songs that are not recorded that often.

But it is the way the musicians are mixed that makes for an intriguing, unusual event. On "You've Got a Friend" and "The Island," Leon Joyce's snare shares accompanist duties with Black resulting in a stark, slimmed down rendition of these two tunes. The dean of Chicago tenor saxophone players (although Eddie Johnson fans may disagree), Von Freeman, shows up on two tracks playing especially soulfully on "Carefully Taught" from South Pacific. Another staple of the Chicago jazz scene, violinist Johnny Frigo, lends his swinging fiddle to a fine arrangement of "Let's Face the Music and Dance" and well to "Detour ahead" for which he shares composer credit. Once again Leon Joyce's rat-a-tat snares are prominent in setting the pace. However, it's the opening cut which provides the clue that this album may not be the usual run of the mill release. 

"Close Your Eyes" is kicked off with as a tango by Black with William Blount's clarinet taking the melody providing a seductive lead in for Lorin. She keeps the tango beat going with strong support from Blount's playing in the clarinet's middle register. A very attractive performance, indeed. "On Green Dolphin Street" offers still another interesting assortment of instruments. With Black's piano continuing to be the constant, Fareed Haque's guitar provides the lead in for Lorin's vocal followed by an athletic Von Freeman tenor solo and he stays around to play behind Lorin for the last chorus. The arrangement of the Johnny Mandel/Alan and Marilyn Bergman tune "Cinnamon and Clove" centers on a Caribbean beat played against Johnny Frigo's straight ahead jazz violin. Lorin's own "Low Down Blues," which she wrote with pianist Frank Collett, is the best of her two compositions and highlights some excellent bass work by Larry Gray.

But nowhere is Lorin's ability to create a story with pictures  brought to life than on the album's coda, "Lush Life." With William Blount's brooding clarinet as background, Lorin delivers a stunning interpretation of Billy Strayhorn's difficult to sing tale of depression and woe. Although not a threat to replace the Johnny Hartman/John Coltrane Quartet version as the classic interpretation, Lorin's work does not suffer by comparison. Good work all around on this album which offers a generous 71 minutes of music. 

~ Dave Nathan http://www.allaboutjazz.com/come-walk-with-me-martha-lorin-southport-records-review-by-dave-nathan.php#.U6HBCbGoqdk

Personnel: Martha Lorin, Joanie Pallatto - Vocals; Miles Black - Piano; William Blount - Clarinet; Eddie de Haas - Bass; Larry Gray - Bass/Cello; Von Freeman - Tenor Saxophone; Johnny Frigo - Violin; Fareed Haque, Dave Onderdonk - Guitar; Leon Joyce - Drums; Mark Walker - Drums/Percussion

Come Walk With Me

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