Kate Schutt

Broken

Wild Whip Records WWR003-k

Kate Schutt, vocals; John Dougherty, guitar

Idiosyncratic, personal, pretty unique, my-thing stuff by a lady who grooves on her own view of the material presented. All adds up to Nancy King. Well, comparisons are odious and, to be fair, Ms Schutt is an entertainer on her own terms. The lady's PR person asked for "our idea of jazz." Easy: "Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Song Book." If we have understood the liner notes, John Dougherty plays on only the first track. Wonder who the other guy is? If it is Ms Schutt herself, we applaud, and would have liked to hear "Summertime" fully explored in the manner it is started. Her "Funny Valentine" is OK and we guess it has been done to death, so why not this way? The best stuff is from Ms Schutt herself. "Lost You" and "Father Figure" are very strong. The revelation comes at the end. "Angel Eyes" has probably never before been thus approached. Purists may wince, but this version is undeniably funky and we (father of four) loved it. There is a certain point of magic that may or may not arise in a performance. Ms Schutt achieves it on a couple of occasions on this CD.

by LawrenceBrazier

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