Gretchen Parlato: In A Dream

By C. MICHAEL BAILEY
September 11, 2010
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Track review of "Azure"

Vocalist Gretchen Parlato is part Bobby McFerrin, part Theo Bleckmann, and David Binney. All men, yes. Parlato's voice is light as an apparition, ethereal and implied. She is fond of vocal gymnastics as is McFerrin. She shares a sense of humor in art with Bleckmann and a musical adventurousness with Binney. In A Dream is the recording Chet Baker would have made, had he been a woman. Both vocalists share an opaqueness in an otherwise transparent instrument.

Duke Ellington's "Azure" is a suitable vehicle for Parlato. It is one of Ellington's lighter pieces, one well-crafted for delicate voices like Parlato's. She delivers the lyrics in a breathy whir over Lionel Loueke's acoustic guitar. The neighborhood is vaguely Latin. Derrick Hodge's brief bass solo adds an organically integrated element to the piece, recalling the instrumentation favored by singer Cassandra Wilson. Much has been made of Gretchen Parlato, and for good reason.

Track Listing

I Can't Help It; Within; Butterfly; In A Dream; Doralice; Turning Into Blue; E.S.P.; Azure; On The Other Side; Weak.

Personnel

Gretchen Parlato: voice, percussion; Lionel Loueke: acoustic guitar, voice; Aaron Parks: piano, Fender Rhodes, synthesizer, glockenspiel; Derrick Hodge: acoustic bass, electric bass; Kendrick Scott: drums.