Elegant, refined vocals with a French twist are what you get on Ilona Knopfler's latest CD, "Live the Life." The CD contains an eclectic assortment of songs sung in both English and French by the Paris-born and Paris-based vocalist.
The musicianship is superb, from Knopfler's beautiful, clear voice to the stellar cast of instrumentalists ranging from pianist Alain Mallet, clarinetist Paquito D'Rivera, and trumpeter Sean Jones to bassist Rufus Reid and saxophonist Antonio Hart.
Knopfler especially dazzles on the French numbers "Comment allez vous," "Dansez sur moi" (Girl Talk), and Charles Aznavour's "Parce que," tenderly reinterpreted and sung as a love song to her young daughter. Knopfler turns up the heat on "Le jazz et la java," an interesting Brubeck-inspired piece arranged by Jay Ashby and augmented by Sean Jones' trumpet.
"Live the Life" - c'est magnifique and wonderful too.
by Linda Goshay
Copyright Jazz Now, September 2005, all rights reserved.
Jazz Now Interactive September 2005 Vol 15 No. 5 - Table of Contents
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