Lizz Wright
Dreaming Wide Awake
(Verve – 2005)
by S.H. Watkins, Sr.
We first heard Georgia-born songbird Lizz Wright singing jazz on the Joe Sample release The Pecan Tree, then again on her acclaimed debut Salt which brought her comparisons to another newcomer jazz diva, Norah Jones.. In an amazing departure from her past and what you’d expect to get, on Dreaming Wide Awake singer and songwriter Wright serves up a dish that is not necessarily a jazz CD… but definitions may collide here.
| Listen To A Taste Of Honey |
From the stark, acoustic opening cover of A Taste of Honey to the equally smooth yet blues-laced Without You the focus throughout this CD is Wrights’ solid vocals and creativity. On this unique and diverse release Lizz covers tracks by Neil Young, Fats Waller, The Beatles, Madonna and Herb Alpert’s Tijuana Brass and makes them as much her own as the original tracks that appear here.
This CD was NOT what I was expecting, but it has it’s own groove and is definitely worth a listen. It’s NOT SALT, but I don’t really think you can compare them… like apples and eggs I’d say. Check it out and make up you own mind.
For more info visit her Web Site.