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After a six-year span since making her final recording for Concord, singer Eden Atwood's triumphant return to the studio exudes a confidence that some writers think was lacking in her earlier work. With first-rate arrangements by pianist Bill Cunliffe and a supporting cast including alto saxophonist and flutist Pete Christlieb, guitarist Anthony Wilson, bassist Darek Oles, drummer Joe LaBarbera, and percussionist Scott Breadman, Atwood delves into memorable tunes by Antonio Carlos Jobim ("Meditation," "The Girl From Ipanema," and "He's a Carioca") as well as bossa nova treatments of Duke Ellington's overlooked gem "Don't You Know I Care?," Irving Berlin's "How Deep Is the Ocean?," and the Beatles' "The Fool on the Hill" with equal success. Her playful side comes through in the delightful "O Pato," while she doesn't overdo her emotions when interpreting a bittersweet ballad such as Michel Legrand's "Once Upon a Summertime." She also wrote lyrics for Jobim's mellow ballad "Carminos Cruzados." This long overdue comeback release by one of the promising young jazz singers to emerge during the 1990s All Music Guide ==== Executive Producers: Ying Tan and Sebastian Koh Produced by: Joe Harley Engineered by: Michael C. Ross at Record One, Sherman Oaks, CA, May 25-29, 2002 Assistant Engineer: Darrell Thorp Mastering: David Glasser, Airshow Mastering using Sony Direct Stream Digital System Microphones: Neumann M-249, M-50, U-47FET, U-87, AKG C-12, C-12A, Sony C55p, Sennheiser 441, 421, Shure SM-57 Recording Cables: AudioQuest Cover and Liner Photography: Terry Cyr Design and Art Direction: James Lizardi Darrell Thorp : Assistant Engineer ==== Her smoky alto voice, perfectly suited for the bossa nova, gives Eden Atwood a natural edge. While she's been thoroughly trained in the vocal arts, piano and the dramatic arts, Atwood requires no props to deliver her performance. It's quite natural. Singing of life's pleasures, she's at home interpreting the works of Jobim and other sterling composers. In Atwood's voice, you can see the same down-to-earth qualities that Tom Jobim saw in the young Ipanema woman's physical persona when he spotted her somewhere in Brazil decades ago. Atwood interprets each bossa nova arrangement with a veteran's flair: low and cool. Atwood isn't the type of singer who has to shut her eyes, turn away from the audience, tense up methodically, and wring out phrases learned laboriously through many practice sessions spent memorizing variations on a theme to get her point across. It just flows naturally. Nothing in her delivery sounds prearranged. And the piano trio she works with here suits the occasion well. Atwood has surrounded herself with veterans. Appearances by Pete Christlieb and Anthony Wilson through several numbers add immeasurably to the album's enchantment. Eden Atwood, the girl next door, interprets these tender scenes from life's arsenal with genuine passion. www.allaboutjazz.com/reviews/r0902_071.htm
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