Featured Artist: Black Olive Jazz
CD Title: View from telegraph hill
Year: 2010
Record Label: Independent
Style: Jazz Vocals
Musicians: Kay Andreas Kostopoulos (vocals), Larry Vuckovich (piano), Bill Douglass (bass), Noel Jewkes (sax), Ron Borelli (accordion), Eddie Marshall (drums), Ian Dogole (percussion)
Review: Caravan is the first track on Black Olive Jazz project View from telegraph hill. The arrangement of this classic, one of the most recognized and recorded in jazz history, has some interesting tempo changes with scats with Arabian influences by Kay Andreas. Caravan is a composition of Juan Tizol, Puerto Rican trombonist with the Duke Ellington Orchestra and even though Caravan is regarded as one of the first latin jazz compositions, the original music already has an Arabian feeling.
The second track, View from telegraph hill, is an original by Kay Andreas with sexy vocals and good improvisations on piano and bass. And Street of Dreams is a duo with nice melodies exchanges between Kay and sax player Noel Jewkes.
There are two wonderful versions on this CD of Harold Arlen & Johnny Mercer Out of this World, in a duo and quartet format.
Kay shows once again her scats abilities in the medley of Gershwin I got rhythm and Ellington Cotton Tail. Kay scats here are reminiscent in tone and phrasing of the ones by the great Ella Fitzgerald. Ella was the master of scats a technique use by jazz singers, improvising melodies with the voice.
The arrangement and Kay phrasing on East of the sun, sounds almost like a lullaby with a touch of swing. Kay is a singer with good technique and beautiful tone, and sings with lot of feeling in the slow version of Get out of town.
The accordion by Ron Bordelli in the ballad Dancing in the dark made it sounds almost like a tango. The last two tracks, Something to live for and A flower is a lovesome thing are from Ellington musical partner, pianist Billy Strayhorn. The CD also includes the less recognized Ellington piece, Warm Valley and a nice version of the classic Estate with Kay singing in Italian.
Tracks: Caravan, View from telegraph hill, Street of dreams, Out of this world, I got rhythm/Cottontail, Warm Valley, East of the sun, Get out of town, Dancing in the dark, Estate, Something to live for, A flower is a lovesome thing
Artist's Website: http://www.blackolivejazz.com
Reviewed by: Wilbert Sostre
