Producer/arranger Peter Welker has attracted a crowd of great musicians for this project including, among others, Mark Levine, Dave Mathews and Fred Lipsius. We first became aware of Lipsius over forty years ago during his tenure with Blood, Sweat & Tears. With support from an all-star band, Winters makes a strong bid for the spotlight in the recently crowded field of female jazz singers.
The album opens with a somewhat obscure tune from Johnny Mandel and Richard Bennett, “Lovers After All” (the title piece). She opens with just piano (Levine) accompaniment for a chorus before the full band joins for a strong finish.
Whether obscure ballads or up tempo toe-tappers like Cole Porter’s “Get Out of Town”, or moody torch songs, Winters delivers. And she does so in style. Hers is a style begun with a childhood exposure to big bands and an adolescense influenced by the likes of James Taylor, Joni Mitchell and Rickee Lee Jones. Later, the San Francisco native worked with singers such as Bobby McFerrin and of course the group assembled for the current project.
“The End of a Love Affair” leads into Duke Ellington’s “Come Sunday” which she delivers like a hymn. Berlin’s “How Deep is the Ocean” sets up a change in pace as the CD closes with what may be the best track, “I Close My Eyes.”
Clever and thoughtful arrangements by Peter Welker delivered by accomplished musicians in support of the dynamic vocals from Winters make this album a keeper. Lovers After All is Winters’ third CD and is set for release on Tuesday, November 8, 2011.
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