Marcus Goldhaber: The Moment After

Vocalist Marcus Goldhaber has more in common with John Pizzarelli and John Proulx than Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett. Goldhaber is part of a group of singers who are more sweet-throated than virile. Their singing style is creamier than the vibrato-less androgyny of Chet Baker and denser in the lower range than Jimmy Scott. All of the aforementioned vocalists have shown a great reverence to the Great American Songbook pioneered by the likes of Harold Arlen, Johnny Mercer, Sammy Cahn, Peggy Lee and Irving Berlin, and Goldhaber is no exception.

The Moment After is a collection of pieces from the American Songbook, performed with a standard jazz piano trio. This format for accompaniment offers little cover for the vocalist—in other words, what you hear is the truth. Goldhaber effectively handles Fats Waller's "Honeysuckle Rose in a swinging manner, encouraged by the barrelhouse piano of Jon Davis, who expels blue notes like a machine gun. "Like Someone in Love is given a more straight-ahead reading than the majority of its contemporary Latin-flavored versions. Both Goldhaber and the band are light and airy.

Unsurprisingly, Goldhaber is most effective on quiet ballads like Irving Berlin's "Be Careful, Its My Heart and Brown and Fain's "That Old Feeling. Pieces like this fully exploit Goldhaber's rich vocal tone. The vocalist is also effective on older tunes like Fats Waller's "Keepin' Out of Mischief Now and "I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter. Goldhaber's band is up for the challenge, providing the singer swinging support without ever overwhelming his delicate instrument. The Moment After is a very fine vocal recital introduction to a new singer.