Ready for a shot of female empowerment with a healthy dose of jazz, funk, R&B and reggae? The very soulful vocalist Amana Melome’ provides it all on her debut, which boasts contributions by studio vets Curt Bisquera and Vinnie Colaiuta on drums and John Beasley on keys. Melome’ has the pedigree: She’s the granddaughter of the late jazz bassist Jimmy Woode, a bandleader and musician in Duke Ellington’s band.
Born in Germany and raised in Italy, Melome’ was schooled in New York and now lives in Los Angeles. The vocalist’s worldliness–she speaks four languages–is expressed through her autobiographical lyrics. On “Nao Falo,” she relates an encounter in Brazil while channeling Maria Muldaur’s up-and-down playful vocals. Yes, there’s indeed an overall aura of playfulness on her debut, as she stretches her chords a la Al Jarreau on several occasions and throws out screaming rock-guitar excesses, courtesy of producer Saverio “Sage” Principini, on “Black Sheep.”
Melome’ is no Sade–she’s not that mellow–and there are too many styles represented here. That’s good for the adventurous listener, not so good for those looking to lock Melome’ into a musical category.
Related Posts
Sonny Terry/Brownie McGhee: Backwater Blues
Start Your Free Trial to Continue Reading
Become a JazzTimes member to explore our complete archive of interviews, profiles, columns, and reviews written by music’s best journalists and critics.
Jonathan Butler: The Simple Life
Jonathan Butler’s optimistic music belies a dirt-poor childhood growing up in a South Africa segregated by apartheid. Live in South Africa, a new CD and DVD package, presents a sense of the resulting inner turmoil, mixed with dogged resolve, that paved the way to his status as an icon in his country and successful musician outside of it. Looking back, the 46-year-old Butler says today, the driving forces that led to his overcoming apartheid-the formal policy of racial separation and economic discrimination finally dismantled in 1993-were family, faith and abundant talent.
“When we were kids, our parents never talked about the ANC [African National Congress] or Nelson Mandela,” he says. Butler was raised as the youngest child in a large family. They lived in a house patched together by corrugated tin and cardboard, in the “coloreds only” township of Athlone near Cape Town. “They never talked about struggles so we never knew what was happening.”
Start Your Free Trial to Continue Reading
Become a JazzTimes member to explore our complete archive of interviews, profiles, columns, and reviews written by music’s best journalists and critics.
Harry Connick, Jr.: Direct Hits
Two decades after his commercial breakthrough, Harry Connick Jr. taps legendary producer Clive Davis for an album of crooner roots and beloved tunes
Scott LaFaro
Previously unavailable recordings and a new bio illuminate the legend of bassist Scott LaFaro