Until I Met You

Melissa Morgan | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 28, 2009)
• Original Release Date: 2009
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Telarc
• ASIN: B001UDYI2W
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #42,463 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Melissa Morgan is a newcomer with an old-school pedigree. Her earliest exposure to jazz was by way of her grandmother's record collection when she was growing up in Teaneck, New Jersey. Some of the first jazz voices she ever heard from among those old LPs - Billie Holiday, Dinah Washington, Sarah Vaughan, Nancy Wilson - were also some of the greatest. Two decades after first hearing those classic voices, Morgan's tastes still run to that heyday of the great jazz divas. Her debut recording, Until I Met You, captures that organic, old-school sensibility and reintroduces it to an entirely new generation of listeners.

"I can't say enough wonderful things about all of them," says Morgan. "A few of the tracks were the first and only takes. We might have done one or two more in some cases, but the ones that ultimately made it onto the record were the first takes, and we didn't touch them. I think that says a lot about us as a group, and how we all get along and how well we play together." The camaraderie is evident in the music.

Whether the individual song is bittersweet or lighthearted, Morgan sees the music in general as part of a larger story, one that she's anxious to tell - provided she can do it in a way that's meaningful to the listener. Listen to Until I Met You and catch the first chapter of Melissa Morgan's promising story.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nancy Wilson, Next Generation (Almost), May 6, 2009

By 

Rick Cornell "RC" (Reno, Nv USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Until I Met You (Audio CD)

I remember listening to Madeleine Peyroux's "Careless Love" 5 years ago and (like most listeners) exclaiming: "OhmiGod! Lady Day, Next Generation!" At first, that was my reaction to Melissa Morgan's wonderful Telarc debut viz. Nancy Wilson. But I realized, that was more because of the repertoire ("Save Your Love for Me" and "A Sleepin' Bee," for example) than the voice. While Ms. Morgan has a wonderfully cool singing voice, like Nancy Wilson did (does), she doesn't have Ms. Wilson's sharpness or her power. At least not yet.

What Ms. Morgan does have, however, is a wonderful sense of play. The fun is most prominent on the old Nat King Cole chestnut, "Is You Or Is You Ain't My Baby," and the great, neglected Mitchell Parrish tune, "The Lamp Is Low." Her delivery reminds me a bit of the great t.v. actress, Marla Gibbs- matter-of-fact, talky, a bit cheeky.

But Ms. Morgan also knocks out a great ballad, as evidenced by "Yes, I Know When I've Had It" (possibly the disc's highlight). And she does a rollicking barrelhouse version of the normally torchy Harry Warren standard, "The More I See You," along with a fun rendition of "Cool Cool Daddy." With Gerald Clayton doing his usual stellar work on the piano, and Christian Scott and Tim Green knocking off gorgeous solos on "Save Your Love for Me" and "Had It," respectively, the whole production sounds wonderful.

The basic feeling I get from this wonderful debut is fun. And Nancy Wilson certainly could (and can) convey fun as well, too. I'm very much looking forward to Melissa Morgan's next c.d. RC

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good talent for a Yankees fan., November 2, 2009

By 

Patick D. Boyd - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Until I Met You (MP3 Download)

Saw Melissa and her trio last night at Jazz Alley in Seattle. Had a great time with her voice and the playful interactions of the band. She sings effortlessly, and it's easy to get carried pleasantly away by her vocals. I'm even willing to overlook the fact she was rooting for the Yankees....(c:

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars RISING JAZZ VOCALIST: A STAR IS BORN !, April 28, 2009

By 

RBSProds "rbsprods" (Deep in the heart of Texas) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Until I Met You (Audio CD)

Five REMARKABLE Stars! What a GREAT debut!! Vocalist/pianist Melissa Morgan is a breath of fresh air among the newest jazz singers with a great shot at future fame. She possesses a beautiful distinctive voice, a sumptuous vibrato, and an upper register that can make a song's lyrics levitate. In the musical area code somewhere between Nancy Wilson and Diane Schuur, she shows the musicianship, maturity, enthusiasm, and versatility to be one of the 'now generation' jazz divas. Given that talent, she also keenly selects songs appropriate to her gifts. Serving up a set of familiar and obscure standards and blues, using different tempos and hot solos from her sidemen, she makes this debut a real WINNER. She is expertly backed by a talented group that includes Gerald Clayton on piano, Randy Napoleon on guitar, Joe Sanders on bass, and Kevin Kannar on drums, augmented by Christian Scott on trumpet, Ben Wendel on tenor sax, Tim Green on alto sax and Francisco Torres on trombone. Ms Morgan has a B. A. in jazz vocal performance from SUNY Purchase Conservatory, competed in the acclaimed Thelonious Monk competition, and is an award-winning pianist.

The 'best of the best' begins with the venerable Nancy Wilson/Cannonball Adderley song "Save Your Love For Me" that Ms Morgan gives her special vocal treatment over a slow burnished beat. Not many singers could pull off the beautiful ballad "He Loves Me I Think" with such verve and sincerity: one of the best performances on the disc with some lush guitar chords from Randy Napoleon (and it went straight to my iPod). "I Wonder" is a belted blues that Ms Morgan takes full advantage of, conjuring up great angst over a broken love affair. The wistful "I Just Dropped By To Say Hello" is a lush ballad that shows Melissa's poignant story-telling ability. A 'Basie'-ish "Until I Met You" shows her inate swing and declarative phrasing, with the musical group really coming on strong in a great arrangement. But perhaps best of all is an up-tempo "The Lamp is Low" with Ms Morgan showing she can swing like crazy & Tim Green gets off of a wonderful solo (another IPod selectee). Put this on your list of CDs to immediately check out and put her on you list of talented, singular artists to watch in the future. The outstanding sound is both vivid and immediate. Marvelously talented singer! Highly Recommended!! Five ENJOYABLE Stars!!
(Note: This review is based on an iTunes Plus download.
Caution: there is also a talented R&B singer named Meli'sa Morgan and a wonderful harp player named Melissa Morgan.)