Jazz, Pop, R&B, Country

JAZZ

A+ "Couldn't Be Hotter"

The Manhattan Transfer

Telarc

For an entire generation, the Manhattan Transfer has personified jazz vocalese. And with crossover hits like "Boy From New York City" and "Birdland," the foursome has also proved that if given the opportunity, the American public will go ga-ga over classy, upscale jazz.

The band hasn't had a hit in years, and their new live album is unlikely to get them airplay on many non-jazz stations, but "Couldn't Be Hotter" also shows that this quartet has lost none of its edge, creativity or eternal supper-club brand of classiness.

No other band has so seamlessly blended the vocalese stylings of the Boswell and Andrews Sisters with modern sounds, and they again meet that standard here. From Count Basie to Ella Fitzgerald, Hoagy Carmichael to Django Reinhardt, Benny Goodman to Louis Armstrong, Manhattan Transfer delves deeply into the hip side of jazz history. Each song, even Fitzgerald's "A-Tisket, A-Tasket," gets a fully contemporary arrangement. And it never seems forced or inelegant -- rather, it's as if these new compositions were just brought to the band's attention here in the 21st century, and this is the approach they came up with. It's a wholly organic, completely modern sound that both respects the songs and challenges them at the same time. (And Janis Siegel's over-the-top take on "A-Tisket" is likely to have your stereo on full volume; her trumpetlike scat solo will give you the shivers.)

The only real holdover from its greatest hits collections would be its version of "Twilight Zone/Twilight Tone." The rest of the set is either a more obscure tune from its earlier period ("Don't Go"), new to the book or taken from its more jazz-oriented 1980s and '90s period.

What makes this such an incredible album, though, is the energy, creative spark and pure fun the band is still having some 30 years after first setting out, the last 25 with the same lineup. Fires clearly still burn in all four of them, for Siegel, Alan Paul, Cheryl Bentyne and Tim Hauser each display moments of such pure artistic inspiration that this may be the best live Transfer album released.

It is at minimum, and quite inarguably, one of the best Manhattan Transfer recordings made in a remarkable career, and shows that the band remains a singular force of music.

-- Jim Trageser

Staff Writer

A "Friday Night Special"

Janis Siegel

Telarc

Janis Siegel was always the cute member of Manhattan Transfer -- like having Cyndi Lauper in a jazz vocalese group. During the height of their popularity in the mid- to late-1970s, with hits such as "Boy From New York City," "Twilight Zone, Twilight Tone" and "Birdland," she was all youthful energy and exuberance.

If Siegel's mellowed a bit in the intervening decades, she's done so gracefully, classily. (And positively gorgeously, to boot.)

On her latest solo release, as in her previous recording for Telarc, she explores a softer, more reflective -- more mature -- side of jazz than she gets to do with the band. It's not just a different sound, but a different approach completely from what the band does -- a whole other way of arranging and singing.

And actually, "Friday Night Special" is as different from 2002's "I Wish You Love" as it is from her work with Manhattan Transfer. While the 2002 release was anchored by the band of pianist Cedar Walton, and presented a straight-ahead environment for her singing, the latest effort is backed by organist Joey DeFrancesco's combo. You put a Hammond B3, saxophonist Houston Person and the hollow-body guitar of Russell Malone to work, and the set is going to positively ooze soul -- which "Friday Night Special" certainly does.

The song selection is more contemporary than her previous outing, too -- that one was more 1950s and '60s standards. On "Friday Night Special," the selection is a bit hipper, with songs by Bill Withers and Eddy Arnold, among others.

No matter. Siegel's supple, magnificent voice can handle anything you throw at her. Three decades in the Manhattan Transfer will do that for you. If "I Wish You Love" showed off Siegel's supper club smooth side, "Friday Night Special" proves that she can handle gritty soul just as easily. She even turns Erroll Garner's dark "Misty" into an upbeat, almost dance number.

Interestingly, on both her two most recent solo releases and the latest Manhattan Transfer release, Siegel displays an increasing touch of Ella Fitzgerald in her singing. The quiver, that slight hesitation that Fitzgerald used to convey ever so much more than a simple note could. No affectation here, either -- this new, more expressive ability of Siegel's is simply the mark of a singer who's never stopped exploring, never stopped growing.

-- Jim Trageser

Staff Writer

A

"Goin' to Kansas City"

Jay McShann

Stony Plain Records

Jay McShann has been on the jazz scene so long that when you a see a "new" album by him at the record store, it's more likely to be a reissue of some of his classic recordings from the 1940s or '50s than a new effort. A young Charlie Parker once played in his band, and McShann's big band replaced Count Basie's atop the Kansas City pecking order when Basie blew town for Chicago and then New York -- in 1936.

And yet here is McShann with a new studio effort, and one that shows him still a master of the KC school of blues jazz, still a swinging presence on keyboards and a singer of taste and passion.

Is he still the same musician he was, say, 50 years ago? Yes and no -- if he's lost some of the fluidity to his singing, he's added wisdom. If he can't play quite as much piano, who will argue the point that he plays better piano now?

He's joined on this new outing by former Chuck Berry pianist Johnnie Johnson, singer Maria Muldaur and guitarist Duke Robillard, among others. The songs range from old jazz classics like "Kansas City," "Trouble in Mind" and "Ain't Nobody's Business" to the old Nat "King" Cole hit "When I Grow Too Old to Dream."

McShann is an American treasure, and to have him not only still with us but still able to perform up to his old standards is a joy not to be missed.

-- Jim Trageser

Staff Writer

A+

"Dimensions"

Oscar Peterson

Pablo/Fantasy

Widely considered the greatest piano player of his generation, and equaled in technical prowess only by Art Tatum in the entire history of jazz, Oscar Peterson's best years to date came under the guidance of promoter/producer Norman Granz.

With Granz's passing on Thanksgiving Day 2002, it seems an appropriate time to issue an overview of Peterson's career with his mentor.

A new four-disc set from Pablo Records, "Dimensions," does just that.

Interestingly, while Granz didn't found Pablo Records until 1973, he had numerous unissued recordings of Peterson he'd made while running his other labels (Verve, Clef, Norgran), recordings he'd not included when he sold off those labels.

So this collection actually allows us to trace Peterson's career from his first gigs with Granz's Jazz at the Philharmonic concert series in the early 1950s up through the mid-1980s, when Granz retired and sold Pablo to Fantasy. During that period, Peterson didn't record exclusively for Granz, but the vast majority of his recordings were under Granz until the 1990s.

Perhaps more than anything else, what this collection illustrates is how very unfair is Peterson's reputation for playing technically astounding but emotionally cold music (a charge rarely leveled at Tatum). If Peterson's playing doesn't have the instantaneous swing of Count Basie, it still has a warmth and accessibility that belies Peterson's supposed lack of soul.

Whether solo or in company (including his famous 1950s trio with guitarist Herb Ellis and bassist Ray Brown), in studio or in front of an audience, Peterson's music has a sustained if subdued swing to it. He combines the elegance of Ellington with the exuberance of Basie, and couples both to the prodigious chops of Tatum.

He is, in short, a monster of the keyboards -- a man so wholly intertwined with his instrument that he could no more stop playing and live than you or I could choose to cease breathing.

The liner notes for this collection are both informative and a joy to read; the recording information is complete, and there are beautiful photographs throughout.

Given the dozens and dozens of albums Granz made of Peterson, a comprehensive compilation would be cost-prohibitive. This set, though, captures an accurate portion of Peterson's career and will serve all but the most die-hard fans quite well as the most complete collection of his work one could ever need.

-- Jim Trageser

Staff Writer

POP

A "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road -- 30th Anniversary Deluxe Edition"

Elton John

Island/Rocket

Thirty years after its release, Elton John's "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" remains one of the most creative double albums in history. The 17-song set, written in a burst of inspiration over the course of a few days, is bursting with so many ideas and hooks it makes you mourn the auto-pilot artist John has been lately.

For its anniversary, "Road" gets the red carpet treatment it deserves. Now on two CDs, with added B-sides recorded for the project, an acoustic remix of "Candle in the Wind" and restored packaging, "Road" is available as a hybrid Super Audio CD, meaning the discs will play on a conventional CD player. But it's worth buying a new SACD machine just to hear Greg Penny's stunning 5.1 surround sound mix. (You can get a Sony player for about $250 capable of handling CDs, SACDs and DVDs.)

With a good home theater setup, this SACD envelops you in sound. The guitars on "Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting" now sting like a third-degree sunburn from the rear speakers, and the song now feels as hard as any Who rocker. The organ on "Funeral for a Friend"/"Love Lies Bleeding" is spread out onto two distinct channels, adding depth. Even lesser known album cuts like "This Song Has No Title" and "Harmony" gain presence exponentially.

The only instrument to lose some punch in 5.1 is the drums, especially Nigel Olsson's distinctive fills on "Grey Seal." This is an occasional problem with SACD mixes (same thing happens on James Taylor's "JT" SACD.)

Minor quibble. "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" is an exceptional test disc for a high-end audio system.

-- Howard Cohen

Knight Ridder/Tribune

R&B

B- "Comfort Woman"

Me'shell Ndegeocello

Maverick

Me'shell Ndegeocello brings a dreamy sensuality to "Comfort Woman," an album that sounds like a continuation of her standout 1999 release, "Bitter." But "Comfort Woman" is merely good, not great, and that may be because the album, at times, feels a little too familiar.

Ndegeocello's latest is full of lush, multilayered mood music, caressed by the singer's deep, rich voice. The songs all sound beautiful, but it can be difficult to tell them apart or to tell them from the offerings on "Bitter."

One song that makes an impact is "Liliquoi Moon." Ndegeocello ruminates on life and death as the song's quiet orchestration and otherworldly sound effects explode into a Prince-like guitar solo.

The funkier "Good Intentions" is equally appealing. Ndegeocello uses few words, but convincingly communicates her devotion to another. The lighter, reggae-infused sounds of "Fellowship" and "Come Smoke My Herb" also provide welcome wake-up calls.

"Comfort Woman" occasionally sounds like a retread, but the album is still far better than those by many of Ndegeocello's peers.

-- Rachel Kipp

Associated Press

COUNTRY

B+ "Blue Sky"

Bottle Rockets

Sanctuary

Falling somewhere between Lynyrd Skynyrd and Merle Haggard, the Bottle Rockets at their best tell working-class stories with rare acuity and empathy, and a sharp dash of wit. Now, after much-needed rest and regrouping, these rockers sound recharged.

Brian Henneman remains the Festus, Mo., band's main voice, one that's still refreshingly unaffected, whether he's singing the praises of workers' comp on "Lucky Break" or finding himself on the wrong side of the missus on "Baby's Not My Baby Tonight." He also opens up on the affecting ballads "Mom & Dad" and "Baggage Claim," a post-Sept. 11 meditation written with drummer Mark Ortman. On "Cartoon Wisdom," meanwhile, he's unafraid to admit he's found a guiding principle in Popeye's "I am what I am." It's a credo that fits this scruffy populist.

-- Nick Cristiano

Knight Ridder/Tribune

SOUNDTRACKS

B "Cold Mountain Soundtrack"

Various Artists

Sony

T Bone Burnett is at it again.

After striking gold with the "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" soundtrack in 2001, followed by the Cajun-flavored "Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood" last year, Burnett's back with "Cold Mountain."

This time the era is the Civil War. The formula is the same, with modern-day musicians interpreting mostly 19th-century American blues, gospel, folk and country tunes.

And, like the past two soundtracks, "Cold Mountain" is a success.

Alison Krauss scores with her ethereal takes on two new songs written for the soundtrack, "The Scarlet Tide," by Elvis Costello, and "You Will Be My Ain True Love," by Sting.

Jack White of the White Stripes is the most prominent artist, taking the lead on five songs, including the standards "Sitting on Top of the World," "Wayfaring Stranger" and "Great High Mountain."

Deserving special note is the mesmerizing a cappella work of the Sacred Harp Singers at Liberty Church. Their gripping performance on the traditional song "I'm Going Home" is the highlight of the disc and makes you stop in your tracks and take note.

-- Scott Bauer

Associated Press