Trineice Robinson: All Or Nothing

Jazz academic redolent of Sarah Vaughan, makes her singing debut with class band including Don Braden and Cyrus Chestnut

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This is the debut album for singer Robinson at the age of 40. It would appear she has spent a good percentage of her life as an educator and researcher, a position on the Princeton University jazz faculty being an important aspect of her career.

The range of material she has chosen for this disc takes in some Ellington (Come Sunday), McCoy Tyner (Footprints), Marvin Gaye (What’s Going On) and Natalie Cole (La Costa), and indicates her appreciation of various aspects of African American music.

Her favourite singers are said to be Nancy Wilson and Carmen McRae, the former similarly not afraid to dip into various genres during her lifetime, although Robinson has a touch of Sarah Vaughan around the edges. Her enunciation is of the same quality as Sassy which is the closest comparison one can make. The voice is a pleasant enough instrument, totally enhanced by the addition of Don Braden and Cyrus Chestnut, who shine brightly on the vast majority of tracks.

For some ears, Robinson will be slightly too mannered and it is true a little more relaxation and looseness would not have gone amiss on occasion. The addition of her young children on a couple of tracks night also be a minus in some quarters and the passages of scat are not always totally convincing. But these negatives shouldn’t detract too much from a promising first outing for a singer who has a welcome degree of warmth in her delivery.

Discography
All Or Nothing At All; Footprints; What’s Going On; Come Sunday; If This Is Love / The Very Thought Of You; You Taught My Heart To Sing; La Costa; You Know Who (I Mean You); Save Your Love For Me; Let It Shine; This Little Light Of Mine (49.55)
Collectively: Trineice Robinson (v); Don Braden (ts, as, f); Cyrus Chestnut (p); Kenny Davis (b); Vince Ector (d); Phil Orr (p); Ian Kaufman (tb); John Meko (t); Nils Mossblad (ts); Kahlil Kwame Bell (pc); Joe “Stretch” Vinson (g); Laura-Simone Martin (bvox); Lindsay Martin Jr. (v, bvox). No recording details provided.
4RM Music 20210806