Her take on Rogers and Hammerstein's "I Enjoy Being a Girl" has a similar vibe. "Thirteen" shows her grittier side, and her cover of Pat Benetar's "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" is a raunchy tease. She does some scat singing with the smaller combo on "Haven't We Met." She can even do a more or less straight pop take on a song when she wants to, as she does in "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me" and "I Only Want to Be With You." Not only is her choice of material varied, her treatment of the material is as well. Jazz, blues, pop, she's got it all.
Moreover she's working with a group of musicians that can swing with the best of them. They excel on every track, but "Lovely Day" shows them off to perfection as does their work on Lerner and Lowe's "On the Street Where You Live." The collaboration between the band and the singer on the last of the songs on the CD, "The Best is Yet to Come," shows just how smoothly they work together. It opens with a laid back orchestration that puts the spotlight on the vocal. About half way through the band gets its opportunity to shine, with some nice work from the trumpet section. Then they come together for a funky conclusion. All the arrangements on the album are the work of Rose and orchestrator, Jeff Klitz, except for Julian Fleisher's "Haven't We Met."
If "The Best is Yet to Come" is in any way a forecast for the future, we've sure got something to look forward to.
Article comments