Customer Reviews

Round Trip

5 star:		(2)
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I suspect most of America's great songwriters weren't outstanding singers or musicians, and I know from some painful experiences that most excellent jazz musicians and singers aren't topnotch composers. Marilyn Harris is the exception. Her tunes are witty, lyrical and memorable. Her singing is outstanding, and the Los Angeles all-stars she and producer Mark Wolfram assembled for this CD are equally talented. This is one of the 10 best jazz recordings of 2006. Buy it and play it until you get a chance to hear Marilyn in person -- and then you can buy some of her earlier CDs to go along with "Round Trip." They're very good, too.

The Marilyn Harris experience continues its giddy, inexorable rise towards unchartered peaks. This road show is warm, funny, riotous and crispier than the perfect French Fry. In a perfect world, everybody would know her songs by heart. This world's lucky to have her. - Gene Seymour, NY Newsday

"Marilyn Harris, one of the last of the true practitioners of hipness, has blessed us with another quality CD. Backed by the wonderful L.A. Jazz All-Stars Big Band this CD always rocks, swings and knocks it out of the park . . . This CD belongs in the library of anyone who loves great writing and singing talent."

- Peter La Barbera, Jazz Zine

"No question about it, ROUND TRIP is an entertaining and compelling recording that showcases a superb performance by one of the best jazz vocalists in the business today...A disc that will appeal to anyone who likes music." - Edward Blanco, eJazzNews.com

"Vocalist Marilyn Harris' latest release features a healthy supply of good time swing and blues. Featuring some of Los Angeles' finest musicians, ROUND TRIP finds Harris in excellent form. Her cheerful voice is perfectly suited for large band ensemble work...mainstream vocals are taken on an excellent journey on Harris' ROUND TRIP. You should take the ride, too."

- George Harris, All About Jazz - L. A.

"Marilyn Harris knows how to write songs - clever songs, knowing songs, novel songs, heartfelt songs (ten of which appear here) - but some of you already know this from her previous discs. What you may NOT know is that Mark Wolfram, her onstage-offstage partner, writes big, colorful arrangements: he mines the jazz orchestra for the range of colors and textures that Harris' songs inhabit so well. Blend in the all-star big band you hear here, alloyed by the hand-picked guest soloists, and how can you lose?"

- Neil Tesser, Co-host "Listen Here!"

"In addition to Marilyn Harris' non-forced, no nonsense, all grown up voice, this album shines due to some great, new, swinging tunes. These are songs the way songs used to be written, with clever, intelligent lyrics and actual strong melody lines that go right where they should . . . This is a very well conceived album of excellent tunes by a voice who, it should be said, "gets it."

-George Fendel - Jazz Society of Oregon

"There is a strain of jazz singer that focuses on jazz's urbane tendencies, alternating between a well-honed cynicism and raucous playfulness in much the same way that Irving Berlin and Hoagy Carmichael did. Singer Marilyn Harris runs in this fast crowd, often writing her own clever wordplay and sometimes the music as well. Here, joined by a studio big band and even guest singer Bob Dorough, Harris creates a skilled program where her wit is matched by tight arrangements that emphasize each punch line. Highlights include an ode to bebop entitled "Bebop High," her cutting "They're Gonna Love Me" (which mocks jazz's tendency to embrace dead legends), and the altogether upbeat "Round Trip." While Harris easily won over the JazzWeek attendees with her solo performance, couching crisp clean voice in these big band arrangements adds an undeniable punch that should win over the rest of the radio panel."

- Tad Hendrickson, JazzWeek

"ROUND TRIP would be worth the price for the L.A. Jazz All-Stars alone. As a bonus, we get a terrific singer/songwriter, Marilyn Harris, who wrote or co-wrote ten of the album's dozen selections and uses her pleasing mid-range voice and effervescent personality to amply enliven every one of them . . .Harris writes clever lyrics that call to mind Dave Frishberg, Mose Allison, Jon Hendricks, Dave Lambert, Blossom Dearie, Giacomo Gates and Bob Dorough (with whom she duets on one of her compositions, "Cool") . . her voice is crystal clear, her intonation solid and her diction flawless . . . Dorough, by the way, nestles in so snugly on "Cool" that one could believe he had written it himself. There's one more engaging duet, with producer/arranger Mark Wolfram on "Way Out Here in the Country." Elsewhere, Harris is on her own, and throws herself eagerly into every song . . .it's a great band, showcasing seasoned pros in every section, precise ensemble work, nice charts and brief but crackling solos by the likes of tenor Pete Christlieb, altos Dan Higgins and Don Shelton, trombonists Andy Martin and Bill Watrous, trumpeter Warren Luening, guitarist Jim Fox and bassist Chuck Berghofer. The songs are consistently clever and refreshing, from the opening "Round Trip" to "The Cards Keep Comin'," "I Don't Gamble," "Bebop High," "The Wisdom of Sam Kinison" and "They're Gonna Love Me," Marian McPartland/Johnny Mercer's tender "Twilight World" and the others already noted . . . this is a splendid album by a wonderful singer and band, one that is easily recommended."

- Jack Bowers, All About Jazz.com

"ROUND TRIP is wonderful! I absolutely love it! On every level; performance, production, composing, arranging, choice of material....EVERYTHING! It's GREAT!"

- John Nasshan, Jazz DJ at KUNV 91.5FM Las Vegas