FEBRUARY 2009 ONLINE EDITORIALS

Laurie Dameron - I Can’t Wait to See You Again

By Greta Cornett

Covers can be tricky and especially jazz standards. They have been played by some of the greatest musicians on earth. If you’re not able to really own those songs and give them something special, it’s just another cover. That’s why I Can’t Wait to See You Again falls flat. Laurie Dameron arranges and records some of her very favorite jazz standards, but there is nothing exciting or new about them.

The album lacks personality and struggles to find its groove. It feels like a jigsaw puzzle with missing pieces. One big key would be the vocals. Dameron cannot accurately be described as a jazz singer. She tackles the songs with a gruff that is reminiscent of Marla Hooch singing “It Had to Be You” in A League of Their Own. Definitely more refined around the edges, but that sort of approach. Her voice sounds manipulated and is pitchy in places where it should be strong.

The musicianship on the album is fantastic. She has some top players sitting in with her, and the saxophone solos are quite fun to listen to. The drums play the brushes in the right place, the bass knows exactly when he’s supposed to walk, and the guitar vamps the right chords at the right times, but it does little to boost the album.

There is one original and that happens to be the best song on the album, “I Can’t Wait to See You Again.” The vocals are still out of place, but the song has character.

Overall, this is an album I would pass on. If you want to hear these songs, there are plenty of great compilations out there that would go great with that glass of wine after dinner. I would like to hear Dameron singing in her own element and give her a chance in a style more fit to her range.