Home > Music > Jazz > Vocal Jazz

Harry Connick Jr. has a rare gift for summoning the style of classic 1940s saloon singing, hinting at Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, and especially Dick Haymes, without engaging in actual impersonation. What's more uncanny still is his songwriting, an idiomatic command of the standards that often summ...

A 20-track collection from the Reprise years that tries to cover too much ground. Very Good Years sweeps from the early 1960s to 1979's "New York New York," focusing on the most obvious Sinatra standards. The watchword here isn't art but populism. That's not a problem, really--but it means that seri...

Love Songs...

A New Standard builds on the popularity of Steve Tyrell's appearances in the Father of the Bride movies. In addition to "The Way You Look Tonight" (from the Father of the Bride soundtrack) and "Give Me the Simple Life" and "On the Sunny Side of the Street" (from Father of the Bride, Part II), the al...

The party line on most Windham Hill products seems to be that it's either the greatest stuff since wave machines, or that it all sounds alike. On a Starry Night, with its collection of world songs and reputable artists such as Flora Purim, Airto Moreira, the Turtle Island String Quartet, and others,...

Though she would finish her career as one of the most respected jazz singers in American popular music, Rosemary Clooney fought long and hard for those props. This 16-track collection chronicles the early stages of her struggle, mixing the outright, if still vibrant novelty songs (tunes like "Mambo ...

The Christmas Album...

While Sinatra, Martin, and the Rat Pack were busy sacrificing a good measure of their vocal talents in the sordid business of fame and fortune, Tony Bennett was quietly, stubbornly, burnishing his vocal gifts into High, if seemingly effortless, Art. How good is Bennett? Just ask the Chairman of th...

Something for You: Eliane Elias Sings & Plays Bill Evans...

The Legacy of Phyllis Hyman...