Denine Monet

Lady Bird

Shotzi Records (SRCD 4441)

Denine Monet, vocalist and composer; Frank Martin, Russell Ferrante, piano; Stan Poplin, acoustic bass; Joel Smith, electric bass; Will Kennedy, drums; with Kenny Washington, vocalist, and other guest artists.

Whether realizing new dimensions in familiar standards including Night in Tunisia, Lady Bird, and Stolen Moments, or speaking personally to the listener through highly evocative original compositions, vocalist Denine Monet emerges as a performer of striking originality in this debut recording. Monet's genius lies in her ability to play against the listener's expectation of convention. Lazy Afternoon becomes an expressive masterpiece when stripped of its bar lines and imbued with an implied pulse. Similarly, notions of musical form are challenged by the chromatic intervals and powerful groove that are the nucleus of the original piece, Mystery. This is a wonderfully creative session.

by James D. Armstrong, Jr.