Samara Joy – Portrait

Recorded at the legendary Van Gelder Studio, this follow-up to Samara Joy’s Grammy-winning 2022 album Linger Awhile sees the vocalist, songwriter, arranger and bandleader reach ever greater heights of artistic expression, accompanied by her road-tested band.

With one of the most daring harmonic journeys in the Great American Songbook, Joy weaves through the shifting tonalities of the restless ‘You Stepped Out Of A Dream’ with complete command of the melodic line. The Mingus tribute to Charlie Parker, ‘Reincarnation Of A Lovebird’, is an absolute tour de force – featuring Joy’s own lyrics; a remarkable, free-time a cappella opening section is followed by a subtle transition to a mid-tempo swing which is brilliantly done.

There’s a gorgeous version of the standard ‘Autumn Nocturne’ in which the singer’s lustrous timbre caresses the lyrics. The splicing together of ‘Peace of Mind/Dreams Come True’, the first co-written by Joy and tenor saxist Kendric McCallister, the second a song from Sun Ra’s felicitously titled album Sound of Joy, is one of the most transcendent vocal performances I’ve heard this year.

Composed by Antônio Carlos Jobim and Vinícius de Moraes, and with English lyrics by Jon Hendricks, Joy and her band give a joyously virtuosic take on one of the greatest songs in the bossa canon, ‘No More Blues’. On the poignant ‘Now And Then (In Remembrance Of…)’, she appends bittersweet lyrics to a tune written by her late mentor, Barry Harris, which the piano maestro recorded on his 1975 album, Vicissitudes.

A dazzling take on ‘Day By Day’ rounds off this astonishingly good collection. (JazzTimes)

Tracklist:
You Stepped Out Of A Dream 4:35
Reincarnation Of A Lovebird 6:28
Autumn Nocturne 3:47
Peace Of Mind/Dreams Come True 7:06
A Fool In Love (Is Called A Clown) 4:48
No More Blues 5:46
Now And Then (In Remembrance Of…) 6:28
Day By Day 4:58