solstice/equinox (Self-Produced)

Diana Panton

Released November 3, 2017

Juno Award Nominee Vocal Jazz Album of the Year 2019

DownBeat Magazine Editor’s Pick

YouTube:

https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_k0G9e5-q-iMR2f_WJmIX4i9PaW2Px6_9Q

Spotify:

https://open.spotify.com/album/7pGkJdh1c1hqB9gz2iuw22?si=3_yFKpoTQNqRTtbuTYJUhQ

About:

solstice/equinox is an exquisitely cra­fted jewel of an album whose multiple facets enchant the listener. As Diana’s pristine voice lures us to follow her through the changing seasons, she takes us on a journey through time and space echoing both the ephemeral and enduring qualities of the cycles of love and life. Once again, Diana’s repertoire selection is masterful and Don Thompson’s superior arrangements provide luxurious wrapping for Diana’s jeweled tones. Equally impressive is the diamond-quality soloing throughout this album.

Saxophonist extraordinaire Phil Dwyer (Order of Canada) is featured on soprano sax in spring and later returns on tenor in autumn. Guido Basso’s (Order of Canada) liquid flugel and playful trumpet are featured in summer and winter. Don Thompson (Order of Canada) provides lyrical accompaniment on piano, vibes and bass throughout, along with the exemplary guitar work of Reg Schwager (four-time National Jazz Award Winner). Throughout Solstice/Equinox, Diana Panton’s instrument is gorgeous, lustrous, precise and feather-light. Her musicianship is ineffably beautiful as she digs into the expression of each word, brings ceaseless variety to soft dynamics and gives every phrase hallowed grace.

Track Listing:

1. They Say It’s Spring (Marty Clarke / Bob Haymes) 04:44

2. The Heather on the Hill (Alan Jay Lerner / Frederick Loewe) 06:15

3. Up Jumped Spring (Freddie Hubbard / Abbey Lincoln) 04:10

4. That Sunday, That Summer (Joe Sherman / George David Weiss) 04:22

5. Estate (Summer) (Bruno Brighetti / Bruno Martino / Joel E. Siegel) 06:26

6. Manhattan (Lorenz Hart / Richard Rodgers) 06:06

7. La Fin Des Vacances (Henri Salvador / Boris Vian) 04:38

8. September in the Rain (Al Dubin / Jacques Larue / Harry Warren) 04:49

9. Tis Autumn (Henry Nemo) 04:40

10. Septembre (Barbara Sophie Makhno) 05:37

11. Cloudy Morning (Marvin Fisher / Joseph McCarthy) 04:49

12. I Like Snow (Patty McGovern9 03:40

13. By the Fireside (Jimmy Campbell / Reginald Connelly / Ray Noble) 04:34

Personnel:

Diana Panton: vocals

Reg Schwager: guitar

Phil Dwyer: saxophone

Guido Basso: cornet, trumpet, flugelhorn

Don Thompson: bass, piano, vibraphone

Recorded August, 2016, at Inception Sound Studios, Toronto, Ontano, Canada

Recorded, Mixed and Mastered by Chad Irschick

Photographer: Jose Crespo

Design: Gabriel Altrows

Review:

Pairing a gifted vocalist with a program of timeless standards is a surefire recipe for a strong album, but those types of projects truly soar only when the arrangements and accompaniment are top-notch. Such is the case with vocalist Diana Panton’s Solstice/Equinox. Her vocal style combines a light, buoyant lilt with immaculate phrasing, an authoritative delivery and a convincing ability to portray the emotions of the lyrics’ protagonists. Those qualities helped Panton—a native of Hamilton, Ontario—win a 2015 Juno award in the vocal jazz album category for her release Red. On Solstice/Equinox, the singer once again teams with longtime collaborators Don Thompson (bass, piano, vibraphone) and Reg Schwager (guitar), two brilliant musicians who worked with the late pianist George Shearing (1919–2011). Panton’s other bandmates here are Phil Dwyer, who contributes elegant alto saxophone work on “They Say It’s Spring,” and trumpeter/cornetist Guido Basso, who adds lovely flugelhorn lines on “I Like Snow.” Thompson arranged all the material in the 13-song program, including “That Sunday, That Summer” and “September In The Rain,” which have arrangements credited to Thompson and Shearing. The 65-minute album is thematically cohesive, with songs that nod to romance and the changing of the seasons, including “Up Jumped Spring,” “’Tis Autumn” and “Septembre” (one of two tunes Panton sings in French). Canadian jazz fans have long embraced Panton’s work, and with a recent tour that had stops in China and Japan, the rest of the world is getting to know this gifted artist.

Bobby Reed (DownBeat)