Live Review - Juliet Kelly At The California Suite

Dressed dramatically in black with a feather head-piece, Juliet Kelly commanded the stage with a charismatic presence. The California Suite was briefly transformed into a dimly lit, cabaret style club with an intimate atmosphere. The perfect ambience to celebrate the Divas of Jazz.

The carefully selected set drew the audience in as Juliet sang some well-known standards such as Screamin Jay Hawkins  I put a spell on you, a song closely associated with Nina Simone, Summer Samba by Marcos Valle and Caravan by Juan Tizol.

 Juliet’s voice has a full bodied mellifluous timbre at the bottom end of her range and a light, clear tone at the top. Her set included the standard You’re Mine You,  the title of an album by Sarah Vaughan in 1962. It was written by Songwriter and Composer Johnny Green who also wrote Body and Soul. This elegant piece allowed the rich beauteous glow of her voice to shine as the spacious arrangement by her pianist George Moore gently cushioned her velvety voice. The progressive sounding Afro Blue provided a stark contrast as Juliet soared into her soprano range creating an intensity that captivated the audience.

Amidst the standard repertoire were flashes of a talented composer capable of referential originality. Nica’s Dream by Horace Silver told the tale of Baroness Nica who was a patron of Charlie Parker and Thelonius Monk in the 1950’s. Originally an instrumental tune, Juliet wrote her own lyrics capturing the story and breathing new life into the standard. Similarly, in Norma Winstone’s Ladies in Mercedes she took an amusing side swipe at celebrity culture. The showpiece of the evening by far was a self-penned tune called Surrender. This intelligently crafted melody was reminiscent of Billy Strayhorn and Duke Ellington and it captured the sumptuous tone of her voice. The audience were enthralled as her soulful timbre resonated around the room.

Songwriters in jazz are always under pressure to perform the standard repertoire. Too much original material inevitably risks audience alienation and there is always a compromise to be made. Juliet delivered a richly diverse set catering for all tastes but her magic lies in her ability to tell a story through song and it is her own material that marks her out as a creative, playful lyricist and composer; a Diva with a striking sense of flamboyance and a penchant for subversion.

http://www.julietkelly.com/