Trisha O'Brien
is a fresh face and voice on the standardized jazz scene, and presents a program of familiar songs that concentrates on the imagination and what can or is fated to be. They're all love songs with a ray of hope and a smile that implies
O'Brien
is happy with life in general. Teamed with the always excellent
Shelly Berg
and his trio of bassist
Peter Washington
and drummer
Lewis Nash
,
has chosen a most professional team to back her. This combo on occasion includes
Ken Peplowski
for three tracks on tenor sax only (not clarinet,) reprising two-thirds of the group that the acclaimed woodwind master used on his 2010 album
Noir Blue
. It's a laid-back set of ballads with a few energetic numbers and
Berg
's rearrangements tossed in for kicks. Uniquely rendered is a light bossa version of
Joni Mitchell'
s
"Help Me,"
Cole Porter'
"I Love You,"
and surprising 5/4 version of
"Let's Get Lost".
specializes in smoky ballads, mixes French and English lyrics on a lone track, sometimes kicks into a slightly higher gear as on a dream medley, or matches
's punchy two-handed chords during a Latin-flavored
"Let's Face the Music & Dance."
While fairly safe and taking few chances,
's voice is lissome and slight, as the world-class musicians she has chosen give her a bigger swing springboard than she might otherwise be used to. It's a good vocal effort, musically better, in the general scheme of things, with promise for future endeavors. ~ Michael G. Nastos