Jul 27, 2009
Voice and imagination in perfect harmony
The singer from Chicago has always been immensely talented but listening to his early recordings now, and fine as they are, they are not a patch on the latest ones In the last few years either his voice has caught up with his imagination, or...
Jul 27, 2009
Kurt Elling: Recasting Brilliance
When Johnny Hartman and John Coltrane recorded their one and only album together they created a moment that shaped the art of vocal jazz An instant of beauty transformed into history Despite a bias towards the original recording, after...
Jul 27, 2009
An intimate reconsideration of an intimate moment in jazz history
"Mr Elling has proved his finesse as a Hartman-like melodistaccessing both Coltrane and Hartman, he sounded like no one but himself†– New York Times In 1963, legends John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman issued their landmark...
Jul 23, 2009
Sondheim, Styne Meet Jazz in Charlap’s Series
Pianist Bill Charlap, always an engaging host, interrupted his concert Tuesday night with a story As a teenager, he told the audience at New York's 92nd Street Y, he'd met Jule Styne and asked the great Broadway composer, "What makes a great...
Jul 23, 2009
Show Tunes, Through a Jazz Wringer
When he was a teenager, the jazz pianist Bill Charlap recalled at the 92nd Street Y on Tuesday evening, he met the composer Jule Styne and asked him for the secret to writing a good popular song Mr Styne, choosing his words carefully, replied...
Jul 20, 2009
Jazz singing doesn’t come much better than this
Dedicated to You: Kurt Elling Sings the Music of Coltrane and Hartman4 stars Jazz singing doesn't come much better than this Elling's taste for angular Beat-era lyrics has sometimes stretched his audience's patience, but on this live set he...
Jul 20, 2009
Out of a set of American Songbook tunes, Elling’s created another original
On this live recording from New York's Jazz at Lincoln Center, Chicagoan Kurt Elling remembers fellow baritone Johnny Hartman He's taken inspiration from Hartman and John Coltrane's partnership in the 60s and got together with sax player Ernie...
Jul 17, 2009
The Guardian: 4 Stars for Dedicated to You
This is a Lincoln Centre live recording of singer Kurt Elling's 2008 London jazz festival show It pays tribute to John Coltrane's ballad meeting with singer Johnny Hartman, Impulse records' 1963 attempt to soften the messianic sax improviser...
Jul 09, 2009
“We remember them both . . . We’re jazz people”
Dedicated to You: Kurt Elling Sings the Music of Coltrane and Hartman is a live collection recorded as a part of Lincoln Center's American Songbook Series, a creative homage to the now classic 1963 John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman recording...
Jul 09, 2009
In Conversation with Kurt Elling
Kurt Elling sets the standard for the current generation of male jazz singers, with a stage presence, smarts and stylishness that are up-to-date but also deeply in the tradition Now the vocalist takes on a John Coltrane classic, recreating an...
Jul 08, 2009
Top honors for Kurt this week!
Dedicated to You: Kurt Elling Sings the Music of Coltrane and Hartman shot up to the #1 spot on the JazzWeek chart for the week of July 6 It's only been out since June 23 and has garnered a growing collection of glowing reviews NPR's Song of...
Jul 07, 2009
Lush Life: NPR’s Song of the Day
Kurt Elling: Doing Justice To John ColtraneNPR Song of the Day By Marc Silver July 7, 2009 Elling tackles the iconic "Lush Life" without seeming intimidated by the song's stature "Lush Life" CD: Dedicated to You: Kurt Elling Sings the...