Career trajectories are as varied as the personalities of people committed to making music. There are countless examples of musicians who have peaked prematurely - who bolt onto the scene early in their lives, make an exciting statement, and then quickly drift off the map, never to be heard from again. Especially in the pop music world, one-hit wonders are prevalent. At the other end of the spectrum, there are those musicians who find their voices later in life, who for any number of reasons, opt to be patient in pursuing the muse. It's easy to disregard those artists, especially in the music industry where youth is gold. But as listeners of quality music know so well, such superficial assessments can well mean missing out on late-blooming talent.

With this in mind, meet jazz vocalist Barbara Adamson, who makes her auspicious and appropriately titled - debut recording Now Is the Time, With time the operative theme of the CD, Adamson delivers a fine set of numbers from the Great American Songbook that not only offer insight into her musical journey but also display her knack for singing into the heart of a tune. "I didn't find my calling as a jazz vocalist until I was in my late thirties," says the San Francisco Bay Area-based Adamson, who opens the album with the upbeat swinger "Just in Time" and closes the set with Thelonious Monk's "Get It Straight," embellished by Sally Swisher's live-in-the-moment lyrics. "So choosing time as the theme of the collection seemed appropriate. I believe that, especially with jazz, you don't have to be young to aspire to your dream. In some ways, starting late has actually worked in my favor. I've preserved my instrument as well as my innocence about the music."

As for why she decided to stamp her signature on standards, Adamson says that she wanted to pay tribute to the jazz tradition. That's not, however, how the project got off the ground. "I've experimented with a wide variety of music throughout my life," she explains, tracing her love of music from her early years singing standards like "Would You Like to Swing on a Star" with her father on piano to her guitar-playing college years learning acoustic folk-blues. "So when I was thinking about possible songs for this recording I considered tunes by such pop, r&b, and blues artists as Van Morrison, Stevie Wonder, Robert Johnson, and Robert Cray. My primary goal was to select great songs that were right for me. When the vote came in, I had chosen twelve standards."

Adamson grew up in Michigan listening to the Beatles and the Motown sound and later attended Michigan State University, where she studied fine arts. Toward the end of her college years, her listening taste shifted from introspective singer-songwriter fare to jazz fusion (Weather Report, Airto, John McLaughlin, Pharoah Sanders, and Charles Lloyd, among others). Later, when writing her own songs and performing, she tuned into a wide variety of artists, including Peter Gabriel, Al Jarreau, Prince, Joni Mitchell, Annie Lennox, and Youssou N'Dour.

"So then I mysteriously make a record exclusively from the Great American Songbook. Go figure," Adamson says with a laugh. "But it wasn't until later, when I'd fallen totally in love with singing jazz, that I found my way into these tunes." In weighing which songs to record, she found that the standards suited her best. For some of the numbers she chose, she loved the lyrics. For others, she was attracted to the melodies. "Above all, I wanted the record to be beautiful," she says. "And I wanted to be inventive with some of the arrangements."

On her self-produced Now Is the Time, Adamson embarks on the journey through these timeless and spell-casting tunes with a simpatico ensemble featuring drummer Steve Robertson (who also serves as co-producer), bassist Stan Poplin (who has worked with jazz and classical artists such as Dave Brubeck, James Moody, and Lou Harrison), and pianist Marshall Otwell (who was Carmen McRae's music director for eight years). Guest artists include flutist Paul Contos, tenor saxophonist Donny McCaslin (Gary Burton, Mingus Big Band), and veteran trumpeter/flugelhornist Fred Berry (the musical director of the California-based Louie Bellson Orchestra).

"This was a collaborative project," says Adamson. "I thought the best thing I could do was to get talented players in a room and let them be totally involved in the process. As a result, the musicians loved the sessions and the results. There were some magical moments in the studio for me. I especially remember 'I Thought About You.' The take that ended up on the record was the one we played immediately after someone suggested we turn the studio lights out. For me the vibe during that take was just magic."

Now Is the Time opens with the Betty Comdon/Adolph Green/Jule Styne tune "Just in Time," which is a love song that Adamson renders as her I-found-jazz anthem. That's followed by the swinging "April in Paris," the lyrical gem "Softly as in a Morning Sunrise," and the wonderfully arranged, deeply pensive take on the Jimmy Van Heusen/Johnny Mercer beauty, "I Thought About You." "That track had a difficult birth," says Adamson, who did the arrangement. "I'm particularly proud of it because the way we play it creates the soundscape I'd envisioned."

"The Night Has a Thousand Eyes" is taken on an upbeat Latin ride; the slow and melancholic rendition of "It's Easy to Remember" is infused with the singer's personal sentiments; and "Yesterdays" swings with joy. One of the highlights of the collection is "Bye Bye Blackbird," which is given a distinctive interpretation by Adamson and Poplin. It opens with long-toned arco playing which creates an eerie feeling, then works into a swing. "Everyone thinks this is such a happy song," explains Adamson. "But there is a dark side to it that we explore."

Even though the tune "Boplicity" has lyrics, Adamson chooses to scat her way through the cooker: "It's the only song on the album where I scat. I wanted to be more of an instrument in the arrangement. This tune was a challenge for me, but I'm fond of the result."

Adamson scores with a quiet, sentimental cover of "You Go to My Head," returns to the straight-ahead swing zone for "I Wished on the Moon," and then ends the set with the Monk tune that she heard on Carmen McRae's 1988 Carmen Sings Monk album. "It's a tribute to Monk, whom I love, but I also love the lyric," says Adamson, who renders the number in a duo setting with Poplin. "It serves as a statement on why I made this album. Even when life throws you a curveball, you've got to pick yourself up and follow your dream."

Though by record industry standards, Adamson's first offering has come late in her career, chalk up Now Is the Time as a stroke of good timing. In the '80s, Adamson recorded an r&b-jazz demo with her Bay Area vocal coach Raz Kennedy. Shortly after, she suffered a back injury that sidelined her from public vocal duties for many years. However, despite the forced interruption, Adamson didn't lose faith. In fact, she says, "Ironically, it was probably a good thing. I hadn't really found my creative voice yet. I'm glad I waited."

While Adamson has studied with a number of vocalists over the years, including Madeline Eastman and Kurt Elling, she concedes that she's been "invisible in the professional realm." With Now Is the Time as her calling card, expect that to change soon.