This second album from Irish singer Stella Bass began life during the Covid lockdown. Ms Bass wanted to create something hopeful and positive and the choice of songs reflect that. They include long-time favourites, songs to honour friends whose lives had changed, and songs written both with collaborators and on her own. The album includes jazz standards, songs from musical theatre and a couple of originals, All the Colours of my Love and Still.
Since the release of her first album in 2014, Ms Bass has performed at leading venues in Ireland and around the world. She headlined Cork Jazz Festival in 2017, and sings monthly with the Hot House Big Band in Dublin. The instrumentalists, piano, bass and drums, are a trio in high demand on the Irish jazz scene and they are joined by leading sax and flugelhorn players who are also well experienced, so no problems there.
Track two, Blame it on my Youth, deserves special mention as it's a favourite song of Lance's and for this performance it's an effective slow ballad with a poignant flugelhorn solo. The album opens well with Sondheim's Being Alive, all about the both good and not so good aspects of relationships, sung very feelingly in a sweet-toned voice with a pleasant nasal quality. This Could be the Start of Something Big is fast and amusing ('declining a charlotte rousse, accepting a fig') with a lively, chattering bass and a sax solo. That Old Devil Moon becomes a medium swing, and the album ends satisfactorily and sensuously with Change Partners.
Well worth a listen – jazz is alive and well in Ireland. Available via the usual outlets. See www.stellabass.com. Ann Alex
Being Alive; Blame it on my Youth; This Could be the Start of Something Big; All the Colours of my Love; Pure Imagination; That Old Devil Moon; Still; Look For the Silver Lining; I Believe in You; Change Partners
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