Amerykańska wokalistka jazzowa Amber Weekes od lat stanowi wyjątkową atrakcję koncertowej sceny Los Angeles. Z powodzeniem uświęca swym udziałem wiele prestiżowych festiwali za Oceanem, jak choćby nowojorski New Rochelle Jazz Festival. Gorąco oklaskiwana jest też m.in. w Caesar's Palace w Las Vegas.
Ze względu na swój charakterystyczny głos i sposób interpretacji często porównywana do Shirley Horn piosenkarka, 3 stycznia opublikowała swój nowy album "Pure Imagination", nagrany z gronem cenionych instrumentalistów sesyjnych.
Na płycie znajdziemy 13 kunsztownie zaaranżowanych piosenek, które wyszły spod piór takich twórców jak m.in. Cole Porter, Duke Ellington, Michel Legrand, Johnny Mercer, Barry Manilow czy Paul Simon.
Amber Weekes odwołuje się do swych wielkich muzycznych fascynacji w osobach wielkich div jazzu Elli Fitzgerald, Sary Vaughan i Leny Horne, jednocześnie dysponując olbrzymim potencjałem indywidualności i oryginalną manierą wokalną.
Robert Ratajczak
___________________________________________
Amber Weekes: Pure Imagination
CD 2019, Amber Inn
program:
1. Pure Imagination (Duet with Sue Raney)
2. It’s All Right with Me
3. When He Makes Music
4. The Snake
5. Gotta Be This or That
6. Brown Baby
7. After You’ve Gone
8. When October Goes - Bossa
9. Mister Kicks
10. The Way He Makes Me Feel (duet with Mon David)
11. Just Squeeze Me (But Don’t Tease Me)
12. Gone At Last
Bonus Track:
13. When October Goes - Ballad
personel:
Amber Weekes - wokal
Keith Fiddmont - saksofon
Curtis Taylor, Scotty Barnhart - trąbka
Mark Cargill - skrzypce
Peter Smith, Tony Copodonico - fortepian
Trevor Ware, Jeff Littleton - bass
Charles Ruggiero, Nathaniel Scott - perkusja
Munyungo Jackson - instr. perkusyjne
___________________________________________
Amber Weekes a regular fixture on the Los Angeles jazz scene, displays a quietly emotional voice and a creative use of space that is a bit reminiscent of Shirley Horn. Pure Imagination teams the singer with such notable musicians (all of whom are featured) as guitarists Mitchell Long and Ramon Stagnaro, flutist Justo Almario, altoist Keith Fiddmont, baritonist Dale Fielder, violinist-arranger Mark Cargill, vibraphonist Nick Mancini and bassist Trevor Ware.
The set begins with a playful version of “Pure Imagination” that has Amber Weekes interacting with her longtime teacher, the great Sue Raney. “It’s All Right With Me” is a swinger that has Ms. Weekes contributing a fetching vocal while on “When He Makes Music” her soft vocal is filled with inner passion. The masterful lyricist Oscar Brown Jr. is represented by the cautionary tale “The Snake”, a beautiful rendition of “Brown Baby” (taken as a duet with Trevor Ware’s mostly bowed bass) and a spirited and high-powered version of “Mister Kicks”. Amber Weekes revives the swing era Benny Goodman hit “Gotta Be This Or That”, “After You’ve Gone” and Duke Ellington’s lightly swinging “Just Squeeze Me”. She takes Michel Legrand and the Bergmans’ “The Way He Makes Me Feel” as a heartfelt ballad duet with Mon David (one of Los Angeles’ top male jazz singers) and joins in with the Bucjump Brass Band for Paul Simon’s “Gone At Last” which is given an infectious 1950s New Orleans “Second Line” groove. In addition, Amber Weekes performs two versions of “When October Goes” (a Johnny Mercer set of lyrics that was given music posthumously by Barry Manilow), very effectively interpreting the song as a bossa nova and a ballad.
While Amber Weekes was born Los Angeles, Amber’s parents were raised in Harlem, where her paternal grandparents ran Weekes’ Luncheonette; among its customers were Duke Ellington, Diahann Carroll, Billy Strayhorn, Lena Horne, Sidney Poitier, and Harry Belafonte. She began singing as a child and considers her early influences to include Diahann Carroll, Nancy Wilson, Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, and Lena Horne. She studied voice with Phil Moore, Catherine Hansen, Sue Fink and Sue Raney. Amber Weekes has performed at many of Los Angeles’ top clubs in addition to the New Rochelle Jazz Festival in New York and Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas. Now with the release of Pure Imagination, her finest recording to date, Amber Weekes can be heard at the peak of her creative powers.
