Daphne Roubini and Black Gardenia: Whiskey Scented Kisses

Whiskey Scented Kisses begins without a grand entrance, just a quiet claim staked in the opening. Vocalist Daphne Roubini and Black Gardenia does not dwell on nostalgia so much as settle into it, as if the language of the '40s and '50s were simply how she thinks out loud. Around her, the band Black Gardenia moves with unspoken ease. The band includes Paul Pigat on guitar and arrangements, Brad Turner on trumpet and flugelhorn, Stephen Nikleva on guitar, Jeremy Holmes on bass, and Dave Say on saxophone. It is a small group, yet they carry themselves as if they have lived the music for years.

The album's nine tracks feature six original compositions by Roubini, alongside recordings honouring Nancy Wilson and Billie Holiday, and one previously unpublished song by young composer Mimi Marlow Jaffe, played here for the first time in many years. Throughout, the band performs with an unspoken understanding, and Pigat's arrangements never crowd the room, allowing Roubini to move through it at her own pace.

The opener is the first of the Roubini originals, "Minor Mood." It sets the tone with slow, deliberate phrasing. Roubini trails just behind the beat, as if reluctant to let it go. Pigat's guitar voicings are spare yet leave room for Turner's mellow commentary. It's loneliness, delivered with restraint.

The title track, "Whiskey Scented Kisses," carries a faint smile, a fleeting attraction, a brush of something that will not last. Roubini does not oversell it, pausing long enough to suggest what is unsaid. Turner and Say on tenor saxophone make the most of the chart, which frames the horns with a gentle sway.

"How Do I Know" is all tension on the margins. Hope and doubt sit side by side, and Roubini inhabits that space beautifully. Holmes' bass work anchors the number with a steady pulse, while Turner's interjection adds harmonic color without intruding. The rarely heard "There's Always Tomorrow" by Mimi Marlowe Jaffe becomes a meditation on time and on how we self-assess across it. Roubini stretches phrases as if measuring the distance between past and present.

The following standards are chosen with care, allowing each song's narrative to unfold by trusting the moment. "You Leave Me Breathless" is associated with Nancy Wilson and is delivered with a welcome lift. Roubini chooses affection over imitation in her delivery, resulting in an imperfect landing. "This Year's Kisses" is forever tied to Billie Holiday and continues at an upbeat tempo. As interpreted by Roubini, the lyrics convey a sense of quiet acceptance, acknowledging that love often lingers even as life moves on.

The final track is an original Roubini number, "Who Stole the Moon?," which brings the album to an up-tempo conclusion. With a storyteller's touch, Roubini could have drifted into yearning but chose a lived-in feeling instead. A vintage romance, a night, a promise, and parting at dawn are love's old sweet song.