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| The Joy of Jazz: Grammy-winning jazz artist Samara Joy does a “star turn” on Eric Wyatt’s 2021 "A Song of Hope" Eric Wyatt's 2021 record A Song for Hope on the Whaling City Sound label is an adventurous, colorful, unpredictable, and wide-ranging session, a tour de force of immense creativity and incredible vision. It's also something of a departure from his last effort, The Golden Rule: For Sonny, also on WCS, which featured the saxophonist in a more straight-ahead jazz setting. A Song for Hope is also, as it turns out, a star turn for one of Wyatt's guest performers, none other than Samara Joy, the young jazz vocalist that, quite unexpectedly, happened to win not one but two Grammy Awards last week, one for Best New Artist, and another for Best Jazz Vocal for Linger Awhile. Samara Joy now records for Verve. Wyatt invited Samara Joy to sing two songs on A Song for Hope, and both are marvelous, in a way, a foreshadowing of the singer's incredible talent. The first track, "Say Her Name, " is a luminous tribute to Breonna Taylor. "I was looking for her to convey the pain of that event, " says Wyatt, and she did. "When I listen back to it, I remember the hope we all felt in making these songs, and Samara Joy was an excellent part of that." Samara Joy is also featured on Wyatt's soulful take on Sting's "Fragile." The singer delivers an ethereal, magical performance, accompanied by Wyatt on soprano sax. Listening to these tracks, it's no wonder that Samara Joy got the attention she did, both from Wyatt, who invited her to sing with him, and more recently, by the Academy, who awarded her such a distinguished prize. That said, no one was more surprised by the win than the vocalist herself. "I can't even believe—I've been watching y'all on TV for so long!" she said, in an attempt at an acceptance speech. "All of you inspire me because of who you are. You express exactly who you are authentically. So, to be here by just being myself, I'm just so thankful." As it turns out, Wyatt's recording was a big step in Samara Joy's career journey so far. In fact, she parlayed several important steps into a recording contract with Verve. Wyatt sensed he wanted an impressive singer to guest on his recording and he knew that Samara Joy had won the Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition back in 2019 at the age of 21. She had been referred to the session by one of his musicians, bass player Mike Boone, a relative of Samara Joy. Wyatt has always had an eye for talent. A Song of Hope features drummer Jeff "Tain" Watts, bassist Eric Wheeler, and pianist Donald Vegaalong with an all-star horn section and a few additional guests. "Samara became a blessing in disguise, " says Wyatt. He had originally thought he'd produce an instrumental version of "Fragile." "When I heard her sing, I knew she could convey the feeling of both of those songs. And she did. Blowing Some Steam A Song of Hope brings the heat, taking Eric Wyatt to the next level As the follow-up to his 2019 release The Golden Rule: For Sonny, Eric Wyatt's A Song of Hope is vastly different in both tone and intent. Where the former was a tour de force, a tribute to Sonny Rollins and a straight-ahead blast of bop, Wyatt's new record is more adventurous, colorful, unpredictable, and wide-ranging. Both are beautiful, for some of the same—but also different—reasons. Wyatt says that his heightened performance on A Song of Hope is a response to being in Covid lockdown. "I think the energy you hear on this recording came from the fact that I hadn't played out in so long, so I was really pushing the music. I didn't play any gigs at all from February until July, when Spike Wilner gave me a gig at Smalls, one of those short one-hour sets. And then Mike Boone called me to play at a new club in Philly just a week before my record date. I did that gig on a Friday, and the next Thursday I was at Van Gelder Studios." A Song of Hope resonates like a team effort and serves as a healing balm for stressful times. On songs like "Fur Live" and McCoy Tyner's "Contemplation, " Wyatt, along with drum legend Jeff "Tain" Watts, together lay it all on the table. Bassist Eric Wheeler's generous tones and agile lines keep things grounded, while Donald Vega's keys bring freshness in his comping and excitement in his solos. As always, Watts underscores everything with tremendous dexterity. His presence elevates Wyatt, so much so that the duo's playing suggests shades of a Coltrane/Elvin Jones tandem. Trumpeters Theo Croker and Chris Lowery, trombonist Clifton Anderson, and percussionist Kahlil Kwame Bell all contribute healthy doses of talent and taste. Elsewhere, as on the Breonna Taylor requiem "Say Her Name, " the lights dim, and the contrast is luminous. On Wyatt's soulful take on Sting's "Fragile, " with Wyatt on soprano sax, he invites singer Samara Joy, the 21-year-old winner of the 2019 Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition, to chime in, and she does so with drama and elegance. Recorded in a single session at Van Gelder's historic Englewood Cliffs studio, A Song of Hope brings all the brio you'd expect from Wyatt and more. His intent to shine beaming rays of optimism across what was then a barren musical landscape is noble, fulfilling. In accomplishing that intention, the man and his saxophone embrace new ideas, expand the band's musical boundaries, and create a vast and gratifying journey for the listener to enjoy. "When I listen back to this work, I'm amazed that we got it done, " he says. "But I wanted to give a message that we need to be hopeful, and music does have that quality in it. You know, you play a song, maybe you get a little smile from it. And if it does that for somebody, then I feel like I made a statement." write your comments about the article :: © 2023 Jazz News :: home page |