This album shows how much Edel Meade’s vocal style has matured since she first appeared on the Dublin scene about six years ago. She opts for an understated approach, ethereal and with a touch of mystery. Combined with perfect diction and the sheer beauty of her voice, this puts Blue Fantasia in a class of its own.

Six of the tunes are original compositions. They range from gentle songs about the beginning and end of love to a quirky little number about a spider, I Tried to Take His Life. She takes a fresh look at Irving Berlin’s Cheek to Cheek and Monk’s Round Midnight, as well as singing her own lyrics to Wayne Shorter’s Iris. One of the highlights is a hypnotic tune called Don’t Stop Till You Get Enough, ending suddenly on the words ‘Don’t Stop!’ Edel Meade gets solid support throughout from her well-chosen group of musicians.

Edel Meade (vocals, arrangements)
Julien Colarossi (guitar)
Johnny Taylor (piano, Rhodes)
Kevin Higgins (electric bass)
Tommy Gray (drums, cajón)
Linley Hamilton (trumpet)
Dave McCune (güiro on track 4)

Author: Grainne Farren

Grainne Farren has been listening to jazz since her teens. She spent two years in London and fifteen in Paris, where she was a translator in Sélection du Reader’s Digest. She returned to Ireland with her son Owen in the 1980s and worked as a translator, editor, proofreader and indexer. Her jazz column appeared regularly in the Sunday Independent from 1994 until 2015. She was the editor of the Dublin Jazz Society Newsletter from 1995 to 2005. Now semi-retired, she lives in Blackrock, Co. Dublin.

More From The Author

• Farewell To JJ’s 2017-05-01