Zara McFarlane - Sweet Whispers: Celebrating Sarah Vaughan

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2024
Time: 43:57
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 101,4 MB
Art: Front

(5:49) 1. Tenderly
(3:46) 2. Mean To Me
(4:39) 3. Inner City Blues
(3:17) 4. September Song
(2:35) 5. Great Day
(5:40) 6. If You Could See Me Now
(3:42) 7. Interlude
(4:10) 8. Obsession
(3:13) 9. The Mystery of Man
(4:29) 10. Stardust
(2:33) 11. Sweet Whispers

Zara McFarlane's fifth album a recording that actually fits the vogueish description "project" represents a marked change of focus for the singer, from London to New York City and points west. Closely associated with London's radical underground jazz scene, McFarlane has previously peopled her touring and recording bands with fellow adventurers such Shabaka Hutchings, Shirley Tetteh, Idris Rahman, Robin Hopcraft, Nathaniel Cross, Binker Golding and Moses Boyd. Significantly, too, McFarlane has also written the vast majority of the material she has recorded, with her Jamaican heritage often apparent, never more so than in the remarkable, at times surreal, Songs Of An Unknown Tongue (Brownswood, 2020), and its immediate predecessor, Arise (Brownswood, 2017).

All this changes with Sweet Whispers: Celebrating Sarah Vaughan. Not for the worse, not for the better, just changes. The album is a sumptuous tribute to Sarah Vaughan during her 100th-anniversary year. The set list comprises eleven songs closely associated with Vaughan, and McFarlane is accompanied by a reeds and rhythm section quartet performing in classic straight-ahead style. The group was assembled by Giacomo Smith, who co-produced and co-arranged with McFarlane. The arrangements are outstanding (check the YouTube below). Smith also plays soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, clarinet and bass clarinet on the album.

The program includes "If You Could See Me Now," the first song Vaughan recorded under her own leadership, in 1946, written for her by Tadd Dameron and Carl Sigman. There is, too, the last song Vaughan recorded, Gilson Peranzzetta, Dori Caymmi and Tracy Mann's "Obsession," from Brazilian Romance (Columbia, 1987). Also included, Marvin Gaye and James Nyx's "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)," which Vaughan recorded on her album A Time In My Life (Mainstream, 1971). Like McFarlane, Vaughan did not shy away from recording socially and politically inspired songs.

It is sometimes imagined that the stylists on London's underground scene are dismissive of America's jazz tradition. It is, of course, nonsense and Sweet Whispers demonstrates that. McFarlane makes no attempt to "recalibrate," "reimagine," "reconstruct" or reanything the material, though there is a nod to the Caribbean on "Obsession" with the use of steel pan. The album was recorded live to tape, with minimal overdubs, and possesses an appropriately authentic back in the day feel.By Chris May
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/sweet-whispers-celebrating-sarah-vaughan-zara-mcfarlen-eternal-source-of-light

Sweet Whispers: Celebrating Sarah Vaughan

---

Nicola Conte - Umoja

Styles: Contemporary Jazz
Year: 2023
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:17
Size: 141,0 MB
Art: Front

(4:25) 1. Arise
(3:57) 2. Dance Of Love And Peace (Part 1)
(5:54) 3. Life Forces
(5:42) 4. Flying Circles
(8:12) 5. Freedom & Progress
(5:10) 6. Soul Of The People
(5:09) 7. Heritage
(4:13) 8. Into The Light Of Love
(6:55) 9. Umoja Unity
(2:56) 10. Dance Of Love & Peace (Part. 2)
(4:25) 11. Arise (Instrumental)
(4:14) 12. Into The Light Of Love (Instrumental)

Nicola Conte continues on his journey from acid-jazz bohemian to spiritual-jazz sophisticate with this immaculately hip album, fronted on half of its tracks by London-based soul-jazz divas Zara McFarlane and Bridgette Amofah.

Conte began his trajectory with the acid-jazz template Jet Sounds (Schema, 2000), boosted it with Jet Sounds Revisited (Schema, 2002) and, after a brief post-hard-bop detour with Other Directions (Blue Note, 2004), began the spiritual-jazz ascent which has in 2023 reached its new, lofty apogee with Umoja. At all stages, Conte's role has been less that of an instrumentalist and more concerned with composing, arranging, selecting the musicians and producing the sessions.

There is a distinctive, singular thread running through Conte's twenty-three year recorded output. This is a result, in part, of his longtime residence in Bari, an off-the-beaten-track seaport on the heel of Italy's boot on the country's southern Adriatic coast, its location rendering it well placed to shrug off the passing fads and fashions of Rome and Milan. Conte first came to attention in Bari in the 1990s with his Fez Collective, a loose coalition of progressively minded jazz musicians, DJs and cultural activists clustered around the town's alternative club world. Fez was a sort of latter-day musical equivalent of a mid-twentieth century European literary salon.

Continuity has also been created by Conte's collaborator Tommy Cavalieri, at whose Sorriso Studio in Bari Conte's most characterful releases, from Jet Sounds to Umoja, have been recorded.

The new album kicks off with six tracks on which McFarlane and Amofah alternate as lead singers. Within their broadly humanistic paradigm, the lyrics address particular sociopolitical issues such as ethnic identity, and without resorting to prosaic agitprop. The singers are supported by an achingly funky core lineup comprising tenor saxophonist Timo Lassy, multi-keyboardist Pietro Lussu, guitarist Alberto Parmegiani, alternating bassists Ameen Salim, Marco Bardoscia and Luca Alemanno, percussionist Abdissa Assefa and drummer Teppo Mäkynen. Another eleven guest singers and instrumentalists weave in and out (see below for details).

The tracks featuring McFarlane and Amofah are the peaks of the album, for which an honourable mention goes to Lassy, whose sensuous, Pharoah Sanders-like vocalisations behind the singers are terrific. Assefa's percussion work is also noteworthy. And a shoutout, too, for the instrumental tracks "Heritage," featuring flautist Milena Jancuric, and "Arise (Instrumental)," the sans-vocals version of McFarlane's opening track, which features vibraphonist Simon Moullier.

Only on "Into The Light Of Love," featuring male vocalist Myles Sanko, and its album-closing instrumental version, does Conte take his eye, briefly, off the ball, giving us rather too much lurve and a busy but bland quiet-storm vibe. For the rest, Umoja contains some of Conte's most satisfying work to date.

Londoners may like to know that Conte and his band including McFarlane will be performing Umoja at Ronnie Scott's on Thursday 8 June.

The single "Arise" has been released (check the YouTube below). Umoja is scheduled for 30 June 2023.By Chris May
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/umoja-nicola-conte-far-out-recordings

Personnel: Nicola Conte: multi-instrumentalist; Zara McFarlane: voice / vocals; Bridgette Amofah: voice / vocals; Timo Lassy: saxophone; Teppo Mäkynen: drums; Pietro Lussu: keyboards; iAlberto Parmegian: guitar, electric; Abdissa Assefa: percussion; Ameen Salim: bass; Marco Bardoscia : bass, electric; Luca Alemanno: bass
.
Additional Instrumentation: Nicola Conte: composer/arranger/producer; Zara McFarlane: lead vocals (1, 3, 5); Bridgette Amofah: lead vocals (2, 4, 6, 10); Timo Lassy: tenor saxophone; Teppo Makynen: drums; Pietro Lussu: Fender Rhodes, Wurlizter, acoustic piano; Alberto Parmegiani: guitar; Abdissa Assefa: congas, percussions; Ameen Salim: Fender bass and double bass (4, 5, 9); Marco Bardoscia: electric bass (1-3); Luca Alemanno: Fender bass and double bass (6-8); Myles Sanko: lead vocals (8); Simon Moullier: vibraphone (1, 7); Dario Bassolino: Fender Rhodes and Moog (6, 8); Magnus Lindgren: flute (8); Fernando Damon: drums (7); Milena Jancuric: flute (7); Pasquale Calo: tenor saxophone (4); Hermon Mehari: trumpet (5); Paola Gladys: vocals (4, 5); Chantal Lewis: vocals (8); Jaelee Small: vocals (8).

Umoja

---

Zara Mcfarlane - Until Tomorrow

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2011
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 43:51
Size: 100,7 MB
Art: Front

(4:52)  1. More Than Mine
(4:17)  2. Captured (Part 3)
(3:47)  3. Mama Done
(5:14)  4. Until Tomorrow
(4:04)  5. Blossom Tree
(5:14)  6. Feed The Spirit (The Children And The Warlock)
(2:36)  7. Waking Sleep (Thoughts)
(4:51)  8. Chiaroscuro
(4:10)  9. Desire
(4:41) 10. More Than Mine (Alternate Take)

Until Tomorrow, from young London-based singer and writer Zara McFarlane, is a delight. This is not McFarlane's first recording her 2010 self-produced six-track EP, also called Until Tomorrow, debuted some of these songs, and she has also recorded with the Jazz Jamaica All Stars but it's her first full-length album. Filled with fresh and beautifully crafted compositions, it signals McFarlane's maturing talents as a singer and songwriter with a distinctive take on the art of the song.  McFarlane is no bluesy shouter, but she is most definitely a soulful singer. Her voice moves effortlessly from the plaintive yearning of "More Than Mine," through the slinky soul of "Blossom Tree" and "Chiaroscuro," to the pure and crystalline sounds of "Waking Sleep." There's often a childlike innocence and honesty to her performance, making her a consistently engaging singer. Her lyric, with their tales of lost love, sadness, romance and sensuality, are equally engaging all the more so because they have an air of mystery, often hinting at a narrative but leaving the listener to complete the story. On "Mama Done" McFarlane delivers a flurry of lyrics part sung and part rapped and occasionally threatening to overwhelm the singer over a tight Latin-tinged groove from pianist Peter Edwards, bassist Nick Walsh and drummer Andy Chapman."Until Tomorrow" benefits from a relatively sparse arrangement: delicate and spacious playing from Walsh and Chapman, over which McFarlane's voice floats with sparkling clarity. It also features the album's finest solo, a dazzlingly emotive performance from Edwards. 

The three saxophonists are used sparingly but effectively. The soft, lyrical, solo on "Blossom Tree" and the more frenetic one on "Chiaroscuro" are especially noteworthy sadly, the players' individual contributions are uncredited on the promotional copy of the album. McFarlane also interprets and slightly re-titles two tunes written by Harry Whitaker, best known for his work with Roberta Flack: "The Children & The Warlock" and "Thoughts." McFarlane's versions stay close musically to Whitaker's own, but her lyrics and vocals give both tunes added depth. "Feed The Spirit (The Children & The Warlock)" lets the whole band stretch out, giving the singer's emotionally intense vocal a strong, punchy backing. By contrast, McFarlane's beautiful rendition of "Waking Sleep (Thoughts)" is intense and perfectly measured. The vocal on her own "More Than Mine" is equally intense and affecting, but the backing is freer and builds its intensity over time to convey the singer's despair. In this collection of beautiful and affecting songs, "Blossom Tree" is the most immediately engaging a potential standard in the making. But Until Tomorrow is filled with musical treasures, waiting to be discovered. ~ Bruce Lindsay https://www.allaboutjazz.com/until-tomorrow-brownswood-recordings-review-by-bruce-lindsay.php

Personnel: Zara McFarlane: vocals; Binker Goldings: saxophone; Camilla George: saxophone; Zem Adu: saxophone; Peter Edwards: piano; Nick Walsh: double bass; Andy Chapman: drums.

Until Tomorrow

---

Zara Mcfarlane - If You Knew Her

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2014
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 54:09
Size: 124,2 MB
Art: Front

(4:42)  1. Open Heart
(3:34)  2. Her Eyes
(5:58)  3. Move
(3:36)  4. You'll Get Me in Trouble
(6:54)  5. Police & Thieves
(1:20)  6. Spinning Wheel
(4:25)  7. Plain Gold Ring
(7:35)  8. Angie La La
(4:00)  9. The Games We Played
(5:12) 10. Woman of the Olive Groves
(6:47) 11. Love

On her full-length follow up to 2010's EP Until Tomorrow, London-based singer Zara McFarlane perfects her blend of austere instrumentation and mantra-like rhythms supporting her rich and warm voice that owe more to Mongo Santamaria than reputedly Nina Simone or Roberta Flack. An album centerpiece, "Woman in the Olive Groves" undulates like "Afro Blue" while being able to act as its logical prelude. Backed by a traditional rhythm trio, McFarlane fulfills the potential of her subtle and muscular voice which sets perfectly against Brinker Golding's obtuse and probing tenor saxophone solo. Pianist Peter Edwards sinks McCoy Tyner chords into the ground like tent poles erected for elemental cover. It is this brief and honest instrumental and vocal simplicity that McFarlane, in her compositions, brings to this modern amalgam of jazz and soul.  McFarlane's voice swells to the challenge of sparse instrumentation. 

She capitalizes on the music's pulse, that necessary element propelling this collection of sweetly opaque songs forward. On "Move" McFarlane sings of motion and strength among uncertainty, motion provided by the shimmer of Edwards' right melodic hand tacked down by his precise left. The sole non-original composition is Junior Murvin's 1977 "Police & Thieves," later covered by the Clash. McFarlane takes the song far afield of Murvin's original Jah-happy rebellion and the Clash's boiling mercury version into the blended jazz-soul terrain of 21st Century London. A gentle heart is Zara McFarlane's, one that burns in a low smolder of creation. ~ C.Michael Bailey   http://www.allaboutjazz.com/if-you-knew-her-zara-mcfarlane-brownswood-recordings-review-by-c-michael-bailey.php#.U3VaFCi9a5w

Personnel: Zara McFarlane: vocals (all), piano (6), guitar (4); Peter Edwards: piano (2, 3, 5, 9, 10, 11); Gavin Barras: Bass (1, 8); Max Luthert: bass (2, 3, 5, 7, 10); Moses Boyd: drums (3, ; Andy Chapman: drums (2, 10); Taz Modi: drums (8); Binker Golding: tenor saxophone (10); Leron Thomas: trumpet (8); Rachel Gladwin: harp (8).

If You Knew Her

---