Jazz Articles about Nicole Henry

Nicole Henry: Time To Love Again

by Richard J Salvucci
December 19, 2021

Nicole Henry has been making a lot of noise, nicely, with her latest album. It is easy to see why. While critics compare her to everyone from Natalie Cole to Whitney Houston, she really does sound like herself. She swings elegantly and does not oversing. Her intonation, diction and phrasing are impeccable. Henry is the epitome of good taste. She obviously has chops and range to burn, but keeps both under control. She will neither shatter ...

Nicole Henry with the John Toomey Trio in Norfolk

by Mark Robbins
October 14, 2017

The Attucks Jazz Series kicked off the 2017-2018 season with bombastic vocalist Nicole Henry backed by John Toomey on piano, Jimmy Masters on bass and Chuck Redd on drums. Ms. Henry, winner of the Soul Train's “Best Traditional Jazz Performance," presented a varied repertoire including songs by Joni Mitchell, Aretha Franklin, Bill Withers and many jazz standards sung in her own powerful style. She just doesn't have pipes, she has PIPES! Defying the label of “jazz singer," Nicole Henry is ...

Nicole Henry: Embraceable

by Larry Taylor
September 1, 2011

With the release of her fifth album, Embraceable, vocalist Nicole Henry pleasingly brings together a range of styles--smooth and mainstream jazz, along with pop and gospel. A roster of musicians from diverse jazz backgrounds are featured on various tracks, with standouts including saxophonist Kirk Whalum, harmonicist Gregoire Maret and pianists John Stoddart and Britain's Oli Rockberger, who all contribute mightily. Among the albums's 12 selections, there are four new numbers including three Stoddart gems, and eight standards ...

Nicole Henry: Giving It All

by Esther Berlanga-Ryan
October 14, 2009

Inspiration usually comes by surprise. Jazz vocalist Nicole Henry can tell us all about it. Sometimes we know there is a certain direction we want to go, but can't figure out what the road looks like. And for a brief, terrifying and always meaningful minute of our lives, we stand in a crossroad to nowhere, wondering what will come next. And that is when it happens. Inspiration comes rushing in, like a blurry shade of blue passing you by. If ...

Nicole Henry: The Nearness Of You

by Mark Sabbatini
July 19, 2004

Had I seen her web site beforehand--promoting her as a “singer, actress, host, model"--I might actually have been less inclined to buy this album.

Performers who make a living based on looks as well as vocal talent are often lacking in one or both categories, but Nicole Henry proves she's capable of both. The Nearness Of You, her first full-length jazz album, certainly qualifies as a swinging album of standards, but probably lacks the distinctiveness necessary to get ...