CD Review – Jazz Goes to the Movies – Ann Hampton Callaway

JAZZ GOES TO THE MOVIES – ANN HAMPTON CALLAWAY (Shanachie Entertainment – SH5464)

Star rating: five stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

I must preface this review with these words: I can’t stand jazz! I love all genres of music but there is something about jazz and all those ‘do-do-dah-do-do’s and ‘bap-pah-bah-bah’s that drive me round the bend. Having said that, there are a few voices that hook me in and I forget about my distaste. Ann Hampton Callaway is one of those voices. So pure, expressive and, dare I say, soothing! Hearing her voice come out of my speakers makes all the scatting and improvisation on the piano and saxophone, etc worth it.

This time Hampton Callaway takes on the movie scores and literally jazzes them up. On this album you will find the following tracks: ‘’S’Wonderful’, ‘Let’s Face the Music and Dance’, ‘Blue Skies’, ‘The Folks Who Live On the Hill’, ‘As Times Goes By’, ‘The Way You Look Tonight’, ‘This Time the Dream’s On Me’, ‘The Nearness of You’, ‘How Little We Know’, ‘This Can’t Be Love’, ‘Just One of Those Things’, ‘Taking a Chance On Love’, ‘Long Ago and Far Away’ and ‘From This Moment On’.

She is accompanied by an intimate, exemplary band made up of Ted Rosenthal (winner of the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition) on piano —Martin Wind on bass —Tim Horner on drums —Jimmy Greene on sax.

Even though jazz is not my genre I do appreciate the seemingly effortless performance that only Ann Hampton Callaway can carry off. If you are a devotee of jazz, then you would be an absolute fool to miss out on this album.

Nick Wakeham