Spring is Here
Genevieve Brown
Independent
* * * *
On her debut recording, Spring is Here, Genevieve Brown displays fine range, diction, and intonation. She draws her emotional juice from familiar standards, adding verbal inflection without overly sentimental mush. Sam Rolling’s guitar and Lauren White’s bass playing provide excellent accompaniment throughout the well-arranged compositions, introducing a new voice in jazz and improvised music. Brown’s sound is both old school, with influences drawn from US vocalist Irene Kral, and modern, drawing on the work of Australian singer Kristin Berardi, with some extra touches added to her delivery, making her sound her own.
Gliding effortlessly through the opener, Star Eyes, progressing to Someone in Love and on to Lucky to Be Me, Brown is well and truly in her comfort zone with straight-ahead sounds, landing as softly as a butterfly on a slightly upbeat delivery of There’s a Small Hotel. From the outset, her interpretation of the t itle track, Spring is Here, evokes saprising springtides and glorious summers of awakening. Brown has successfully delivered a pleasurable and enticing jazz album showcasing her mastery of the art of vocalese and demonstrating that she is an artist for all seasons.
– Barry O’Sullivan