Maci Miller: Nine

Philadelphia-based singer Maci Miller gives her audience a variety of looks, all of them good. On first hearing, Blossom Dearie, but then, Blossom Dearie was Blossom Dearie. No one ever sounded quite like her. Then again, there is some mid 1960s Nancy Wilson, hushed, clipped, all business. On reflecting that Dearie and Wilson an odd combination do make, one just listens and stops thinking influences, other than "eclectic." Or maybe Billie Holiday, if Miller is in the mood. A Philly band that includes Larry McKenna, Byron Landham, Aaron Graves, Mike Boone, Leon Jordan, Sr. ,Victor North, and, by residential courtesy, Jeremy Pelt (whose contribution rivals McKenna's for sheer beauty), only makes the outing a special one. Nine is something cool indeed,

While Miller may not be widely known, this is her fifth CD after a hiatus due to COVID and, far more benignly, time out for childcare. She is also now touring in the Northeast, which would give audiences a chance to hear her live. Whether with a small group or a big band, she swings, can turn on the heat, and be sweet or sultry, depending on mood. Her contralto voice is not big, but Miller is one of those singers about whom it is often said, "she has something." Indeed she does: talent.

The tunes on offer her give Miller a chance to show off her varying gifts. "High Wire" is an up-tempo, Chick Corea flounce with notes of early Eden Atwood. "Firm Roots" brightly does much the same. "Love Me For Whom I am" is a soulful request, with McKenna supplying the obligato. He also does so on "Complicated," another I-vi-ii-V sort of tune. "The Nearness of You" is a standard that features a lovely Jeremy Pelt solo. Miller does a very nice job here. "I Can't Wait" is a tune of Miller's own composition (with Aaron Graves), as is "Strange is the Night" and "Feel the Music."

It seems odd that Miller does not have a larger reputation, especially by the evidence of this recording. There are, it is true, a lot of singers around, but Miller is one of the better ones and a cut above. She is well worth making an effort to hear.