Touch You With A Song review by jazzimprov magazine

Richard “Cookie” Thomas TOUCH YOU WITH A SONG – Cookietime Productions. P.O. Box 110192, Stamford, CT 06911-0192. www.cookiethomas.com. At Last, Moonlight in Vermont, I Wish You Love, Night and Day, Hey There, Autumn Serenade, Azure- Te, Nature Boy, The Way You Look Tonight, My Romance, Stardust PERSONNEL: Richard “Cookie” Thomas, vocals; John Di Martino, piano; Marcus McLaurine, bass, Tim Horner, drums; Peter Brainin, tenor & soprano saxophone; Lou Volpe, guitar. By Bill Donaldson Richard “Cookie” Thomas is carving a niche for himself as a crooner in the tradition of singers like Joe Williams or Johnny Hartman, a reassuring baritone who’s as effective in front of a big band as he is with a small group. But while Williams gained fame with the Count Basie Orchestra and Hartman mostly for his gorgeous album of ballads with John Coltrane—although of course their careers included many more highlights than those—Thomas prefers to be most comfortable singing with a piano-led groups. And those that back him, like John Di Martino’s or Lynne Arriale’s, are well known in their own right. When combined with Thomas’ voice, the effect is one of a straightforward balladeer comforting his audience through song while the back-up musicians contribute original arrangements that add character to the recordings. Thomas knows where his strengths lie—strengths like extracting meaning from songs, fluid delivery and sustained accuracy of pitch—and he chooses his repertoire accordingly, thus maintaining a consistency in the music he performs and the image he projects. Delving into the seemingly limitless availability of standards lending themselves to romantic interpretations, Thomas enlivens the songs through a true affection for the material, making the words and melody sufficient for connecting with listeners instead of adding improvisational devices of word or music. The set-up for the first track, “At Last,” prepares the listener for all that follow, with di Martino’s vibrant arrangement, not to mention Peter Brainin’s interwoven tenor sax work, supporting the long tones and precise articulation of Thomas’ voice. Brainin once again provides an effective complement for Thomas on “Moonlight in Vermont,” during which he plays a soprano saxophone solo of implicit swing suggested within the ornamentations he plays during Thomas’ rests, the sax playing voiced-based in origin as if an extension of Thomas’ singing. Midway through the CD, Thomas generously allows di Martino’s piano trio to perform “Autumn Serenade” as an instrumental, giving listeners the opportunity to appreciate the interaction that makes possible the cohesiveness of their accompaniment. Alternating a slight Brazilian percussive beat with straight-ahead development of the song, di Martino provides a midpoint intermission, so to speak, sandwiched between Thomas’ vocal tracks. Modestly, the instrumental group remains in the background through most of the album, though, to illuminate the translucent glow of Thomas’ voice. Thomas remains modest as well, crafting the songs with warmth and stepping back to allow the instrumentalists to shine for synergistic appeal, borne of mutual respect. With the inclusion of “Azure-Te,” Thomas obviously wants to evoke memories of Nat Cole, and he does, though di Martino’s arrangement takes the performance beyond the usual lounge-piano accompaniment and into a more jazz-based atmosphere. With cushioning effect, Thomas delivers the lyrics for the remaining songs as the emotions arises from the scenes depicted by the situations described by the lyrics, most of which involve direct expressions of attraction. Circumlocution or ambiguity evidently is not a part of his vocabulary: “I wish you bluebirds/In the spring/To give your heart/A song to sing/And then a kiss/ But more than this/I wish you love.” While Thomas stays busy in his home state of Connecticut with club work, commercial voiceovers and acting assignments, it’s his singing that finally is gaining him recognition on a nationwide basis as a sincere balladeer with a distinctive voice and jazz sensibilities. P.O. Box 26770, Elkins Park, PA 19027 USA Phone: 215-887-8808