American singer Mary Foster Conklin was born in New Jersey, but moved to New York to work in theater. When she teamed up with drummer & composer Art Lillard's Heavenly Band she transformed herself into a singer. Her songs changed from show tunes to blues, Latin and bebop. Mary mixes contemporary material and standards with lesser known songs from the Great American Songbook. She has already performed in The Blue Note, Zinc Bar, Iridium, Birdland, the Kitano and Pangea. But on the other side of the country, in LA, she has also performed on stage, as well as in Chicago and Palm Beach. In 2010 she received the MAC Award for Jazz Vocalist from the Manhattan Association of Cabarets and Clubs. Her latest (and sixth) CD has now arrived here, and she demonstrates her soft voice with the opener 'Summertime', not Gershwin's, but Leonard Cohen's. Mary is joined here by pianist John Di Martino, violinist Sara Caswell, bassist Ed Howard, drummer Vince Cherico, guitarist Guilherme Monteiro and percussionist Samuel Torres. 'Some Cats Know' is a cool, sexy song by Leiber & Stoller, after which 'Just a Little Lovin' is an ode to the simple things in life. Then the pop song 'Come In From the Rain' by Melissa Manchester and Carole Bayer Sager gets the same approach, after which the monotonous 'Scars' is started with a poem. Then we go on a samba tour with 'Just For Now' by André & Dory Previn. 'A Little White Ship' weaves a dreamlike atmosphere, and 'Heart's Desire' sounds rather sad. The obscure song 'Rainbow' follows, and 'Until It's Time for You to Go' by Buffy Sainte-Marie also sounds melancholic. Closing track 'September Song' is dedicated to the memory of her father, who passed away in 2018. A rather subdued CD, therefore, all about love and loss, which did not appeal to me.
		Website Mary Foster Conklin Tracks: Summertime Some Cats Know Just a Little Lovin’ Come In From the Rain Scars Just For Now A Little White Ship Heart’s Desire Rainbow Until It’s Time for You to Go September Song Copied from culturmania with the permission of the author.