Sarah Vaughan at Mister Kelly’s

This is exactly what I want out of a 50's album, exactly the quintessential jazz band song experience I'm looking for. And what a voice! How did I not know Sarah Vaughan?

cool

A live album by one of the best voices to have ever existed with a truly professional band.
The chosen songs are some of the more famous jazz songs, but not fully engaging throughout the album. Where they go a bit more uptempo, they band gets to showcase themselves a bit more.

Ah heti ekasta biisistä pääsee tähän jazz-laulun tunnelmaan. Sataispa ulkona vielä vettä.

First off, the improvised humor during the second song (Willow Weep For Me) and throughout the last song (How High The Moon) put a smile on my face. It was enjoyable to hear an artist just rolling with it in a live performance. And honestly, if you weren't paying close attention, I think it would just roll by you as a listener as well. It's a testament to how clean, tight and yet how fluid Sarah Vaughan and the Trio are across this album.

Everything about this album felt in perfect balance, which I find especially remarkable given it's a recording of a live performance.

Sarah's vocals are an enchanting blend of smooth, pitch perfect and with a touch of smokey rasp. She carries every tune perfectly and doesn't overly-adorn, preferring instead to be straight to the point.

And sitting just below the canopy of the vocals is the remarkably stout trunk that is the backing trio. Their performance was equaly clear, concise and beautiful.

All told, it's a lovely album, made more special by the candor and simplicity that comes from the stripped down production of recording a live performance.