Russ Lorenson: A Little Travelin’ Music
Given the prevailing “modern” musical landscape, I seldom, if indeed, ever, feel the urge to consult Peter Mark Roget on the off-chance that a couple of new superlatives may have emerged in the interim, but after playing this album I had to make a serious effort to stay my hand from reaching for the shelf where his invaluable tome resides.
A Little Travelin’ Music is exactly what it says on the tin, 13 songs connected, albeit loosely, with travel. As concepts go this is hardly novel, and I doubt seriously that Mr. Lorenson himself, or any of his creative team, would claim credit for originality. On the contrary, the album opens with a nod to a similar but much older album, comprising as it does a two-song medley (the title song plus Let’s Get Away From It All) from Frank Sinatra’s Come Fly With Me album, released in 1957. Perhaps, before proceeding, I should point out that this is not so much a new album as a 20th anniversary – again, as it says on the tin – reminder of an album recorded (and presumably released) in 2006. This makes it somewhat unique, for in 2006, Mr. Lorenson was running very much against the current trend, in reaching back more than half a century for his song selection (for the record, the oldest selection dates from 1937, the youngest from 1982). Having dealt with this aspect, I can now turn to the album itself, of which there is much to admire.
Given that he is a child of the 1960s, Mr. Lorenson has a rather fetching voice, and I, for one, am delighted that he has chosen to lavish it on quality, rather than squander it on dross. To dispense up front, with my one, albeit mild, reservation; he takes I Love Paris a tad too fast for my taste (let’s face it, there’s one in every platoon). This leaves me free to laud the other dozen tracks and note that on four of the 13 tracks he includes the verse – unthinkable, even in 2006, let alone today; indeed, “modern” writers wouldn’t recognise a verse if it ran up and bit them on the ASCAP. Mr. Lorenson is clearly aware that a good verse can lead you to the song, as a garden path leads you to the entrance of a friendly home.
For me the standout track (8) is actually a two-song medley, comprising A Foggy Day / A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square. Now, I’m a Sinatra fan and I don’t care who knows it and until now I had always considered his jaunty 1953 reading of A Foggy Day to be definitive. But here, Mr. Lorenson slows it down to a heartbeat, giving Sinatra something to think about. With a running time of 8.50, it was clearly impractical to include both verses and though on balance I would have preferred the Nightingale verse to that of Foggy Day, this is a minor cavil on what remains an outstanding track.
Not too far behind is Mr. Lorenson’s reading of Fly Me To The Moon. Bart Howard wrote this, in 3/4 time, and entitled it In Other Words, though it’s doubtful that he turned his nose up at the pension it laid on him once it was upped to 4/4 and renamed as the first five words of the lyric. Here, Mr. Lorenson restores the 3/4 time and delivers a fine reading. Another track that caught my ear is Rhode Island Is Famous For You, written in 1948 by Arthur Schwartz and Howard Dietz for the revue Inside USA; alas, the “list-song” aspect – the lyric reels off what resources are peculiar to various states – has allowed it to become neglected, and Mr. Lorenson’s rescue of this feel-good number is yet another bonus on a fine album.
Given Mr. Lorenson’s strong association with the Bay Area, plus his admiration for Tony Bennett, we shouldn’t be too surprised that the final track, complete with verse, is I Left My Heart In San Francisco, in which he delivers yet another pleasing vocal. The musicians work well together and in general complement Mr. Lorenson’s vocal, and Kelly Park weighs in with a tasty piano break on Nightingale. In closing I’d just like to repeat that this is a thoroughly enjoyable album, and I’d be delighted if it does, against the run of play, find its audience.
Discography
Come Fly With Me / Let’s Get Away From It All; When In Rome; I Love Paris; Moonlight In Vermont; The Air-Minded Executive; Rhode Island Is Famous For You; A Foggy Day / A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square; Gay Paree; Home To Stay; I Left My Heart In San Francisco (44.18)
Lorenson (v); Kelly Park (p); Reid Whatley (b); Jack Dorsey (d); Jeff McNish, Igor Abuladze (g); Tony Malfatti (ts, cl, f). Original tracks recorded Mitch Park Productions, San Leandro, California, December 2005 & January 2006. Additional recording for the 20th anniversary reissue done at EastSide Sound, New York City, August 2025.
RL Productions RL 006
Louise Alexandra: Crazy World Of Love
There’s a rumour going around, possibly started by the editor [or your writing – Ed.], that I’m hard to please. I resent that. I don’t deny it, I resent it. If there is any truth in it, we can lay the blame on longevity. I’ve lived too long, and been spoiled by seeing and hearing in live performance, the likes of Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis, Mel Tormé, Billy Eckstine, Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Carmen McRrea [though I can’t spell her name correctly – Ed.], Blossom Dearie, Judy Garland, etc. If you’ve seen the Taj Mahal it’s hard to work up a sweat about Sunderland Town Hall.
Things do, however, appear to be on the mend. After playing two recent CDs, we’re talking Happy Bunny. There’s one male, and one female vocalist, and both are reaching back a minimum of 75, and in one case, 91 years for material, and, totally coincidentally, both albums feature two two-song medleys.
As non-musical day-jobs go, the female airline pilot Judy Whitmore set a high benchmark, but now I find myself entering the orbit of Louise Alexandra – by day a cancer research scientist, by night a vocalist in the old style. I.e., she’s content just to sing, with no apparent desire to double as a contortionist, or Mexican Jumping Bean. Out of the 14 tracks on her new album, Crazy World Of Love, nine can be traced back to the era when craftsmanship ruled. And even the five “modern” songs are easy on the ear, the whole complemented by first-rate accompanists, the cream of Dutch jazz musicians.
The medley Some Other Time / We’ll Be Together Again is particularly fetching, albeit Louise Alexandra is either unaware of, or chooses to ignore the extra chorus provided for this wistful ballad from On The Town. (If you saw the 1949 film adaptation rather than the original 1944 stage production you should know that several numbers, including Some Other Time, were dropped from the film version whilst other numbers were added.) The Summer Knows is also a high point, but in truth, there’s little wrong with what I can only describe as a delightful album.
It must be gratifying to be a person like Louise Alexandra, and reflect each evening, as your head touches your pillow, that in both your chosen careers, you bring only joy into a troubled world. The Dutch already have one legend, a cat named Hans Brinker, who held his finger in a dike and stemmed a flow that threatened to overwhelm a nation. If they’re not careful, the Dutch could find they have in their midst a Hannah Brinker whose finger, in that same dike, stems the flow of dross, aka “modern” music; a world in which the jazz journals can still hold their own, as the hip-hop heralds and rap rags gain ground, inexorably.
Discography
Too Late Now; All My Tomorrows; Castle In The Sky; The Summer Knows; Heart’s Desire; Angel Of Mine; Crazy World Of Love; Some Other Time / We’ll Be Together Again; We Had It All; You Go To My Head; Hershey Bar / Little Did I Dream (56.50)
Alexandra (v); Rob van Bavel (p); Frans van Geest (b); Vincent Koning (g) Benny Benack III (flh); Jan Menu (bar, ts); Marcel Serierse (d, pc). MCO Studio 2. Hilversum, 27 March and 10 April 2025.
Kathy Ingraham: Jazz Dreams
Yet another “new” name to me, Kathy Ingraham offers just seven tracks, with a running time of 31 minutes, with virtually everything taken at a slow, sedate pace, which I, for one find refreshing in a musical landscape where most of the performers I get to hear seem to prefer the mile-a-minute approach. I won’t pretend that it’s my cup of tea – all seven tracks are apparently well-known, yet only one, The House Of The Rising Sun, was familiar to me. In Ms Ingraham’s favour is the ability to shout and still retain a tunefulness in the voice, a knack which eludes some modern vocalists. Ms. Ingrahams is clearly discerning in her choice of accompanists, with Randy Brecker, flugelhorn and Evan Christopher, clarinet making decent contributions. I see no reason why this album should fail to find its audience.
Discography
Dream On; The House Of The Rising Sun; Little Things Redux; Melusina; Ruby Tuesday; Eli’s Comin’; Stairway To Heaven (37.15)
Ingraham (v); Pete Levin (p, syn); Randy Brecker (flh); Evan Christopher (cl); William Galison (harm); Elliott Randall, Matt Wensler (g); Joel Rosenblatt (d). USA, date unknown.
Pierdon Records