Dianne Reeves Bridges CD

BRIDGES was nominated for the 2000 Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Performance.

Along with jazz-folk diva Cassandra Wilson and mother-of-them-all Abbey Lincoln, the eclectic singer Dianne Reeves is a strong believer in mixing up genres on her albums. It's perhaps the only way to be a "jazz" singer now. Leave the standards-only sets to marginal cabaret belters. Still, a singer with Reeves' formidable chops is sometimes tempted to overdo it, an occupational hazard in current jazz practice. Happily, this intelligent vocalist has the taste and a light enough touch to bring her highly varied programs off with aplomb.

Tunes like Leonard Cohen's "Suzanne" and Joni Mitchell's "River" are jazzed up just enough to suit her sinewy sensibility but still retain their outline and essential meaning. Reeves is ably assisted in this task by a crack team of accompanists, including pianists George Duke and Billy Childs, soprano saxophonist Kenny Garrett, and bassist Stanley Clarke, who produces some beautifully articulated lines on "Testify."

Recorded at Right Track Studio A, New York, New York; Conway Studio C and Le Gonks West, Los Angeles, California.

Personnel: Dianne Reeves (vocals, hand claps); Munyungo Jackson (whistling, drums, cymbals, shaker, tambourine, caxixi, percussion); Brian Blade (guitar, drums); Romero Lubambo (guitar); Jimmy Zalval (harmonica); Kenny Garrett (saxophone, soprano saxophone); Marcus Printup (trumpet); Marcus Miller, Mulgrew Miller, Billy Childs (piano); Joe Locke (vibraphone, marimba); Manolo Badrena (bongos); George Duke (hand claps).

Audio Mixer: Erik Zobler.

Recording information: Right Track Studio"A", NY.

Photographer: Deborah Feingold.

Arranger: Billy Childs.

Personnel: Dianne Reeves (vocals); Kenny Garrett (saxophone); Marcus Printup (trumpet); Jimmy Zavala (harmonica); Joe Locke (vibraphone, marimba); George Duke (piano, Wurlitzer piano); Mulgrew Miller, Billy Childs, Eddie Del Barrio (piano); Romero Lubambo (guitar); Reginald Veal, Stanley Clarke (bass); Terri Lyne Carrington, Brian Blade (drums); Munyungo Jackson (Morroccan drums, batajon, cricket, caxixi, shaker, whistle, tambourine, hi-hat, pipe, shells, frying pan, cheek pop, percussion, hand claps); Manolo Badrena (bongos, percussion).

JazzTimes (8/99, p.95) - "...consummate artistry and poetic pop-soul-folk sweep....lifts her vocals to whole new levels of lyric-melody-rhythm shape-shifting....man, it's all good."