"A revelation- If you like Carmen McRae and/or Nancy Wilson, get this CD. This lady is the real thing!"
NOW THAT'S JAZZ!
Darrren12000 | Washington, DC | 10/14/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Mary Stallings is a wonderful singer. She has pulled together great songs on this album. Her voice is very textured and strong. YOu really hear some powerful influences in her singing -- Nancy Wilson (especially), Carmen McRae, Esther Phillips. Stallings is a little-known gem. She deserves more attention than she receives. Buy this album and enjoy some "real" jazz vocals."
Wow, I had to have it after a hearing it on the radio!
kindablu | Phila, PA United States | 12/19/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I have many vocalists recordings, I heard this live recording on the radio and hurried home to listen to more. Definite add to your collection."
What Mary Stallings is Really Like....
Gary L Connely | Hercules, CA | 04/07/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"One of my cardinal personal rules is to avoid reviewing those albums that have already been reviewed by others - particularly when their opinions pretty much track my own. That's the case with Mary Stallings' "Live at the Village Vanguard." BUT, I'm going to make an exception here because, unlike most of the other reviewers, (at least as far as I can tell), I've actually seen Ms Stallings perform live numerous times - starting in about 1963 when I saw her at a club in San Francisco, (maybe the Black Hawk), right up until 2006 when I saw her, backed by Geri Allen and the Marcus Shelby Jazz Orchestra, the night she received the SF Jazz Festival's Beacon Award. I say all of this, not to pat myself on the back, but to say that if you want to hear what Ms Stallings' concerts are REALLY like - her relaxed interaction and easy repartee with her band and audience, her humor, her mastery of the art of delivering a song the way the Gods of Jazz intended it to be delivered - in short, if you want to hear one of the best jazz singers singing today - "Live...," gets it right.
"Live...," is a typical Mary Stallings' date: A mix of standards and more obscure gems, each delivered in her inimitable, swinging style. Ms Stallings has an almost four octave range, but you'll seldom find her engaging in the vocal fireworks that many of our younger singers bring to the party - she never shows off - like Carol Sloane, she lets the song do the work - and you'll find that you can't take your ears off her, (if you are one of those odd people who likes to read novels backwards, try listening to the last two cuts on this record first - "Lullaby of the Leaves" and "I Didn't Know About You" - you may never be the same again).
Ms Stallings is joined here by pianist Eric Reed; Ron Blake on tenor; Vicente Archer on bass; and Carl Allen on drums. These gentlemen are first rate and, as Ms Stallings always does with her bands, she lets them shine.
MaxJazz has done an excellent job with the sonics: The record captures the feel of the room and Ms Stallings' voice is front and center. Enjoy....