The Gathering (Amber Inn Productions)
Amber Weekes
Released in 2020
Yuletide Music Roundup For 2020 (DownBeat)
YouTube:
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_lHvsJ7-Z2PeGFTgmPZpoJjG7MjU9LyPzE
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About:
The versatile jazz singer Amber Weekes creates an inventive, heartfelt, and surprising Christmas Album. In a diverse program filled with swingers, ballads, and soulful departures, the singer is joined by top Los Angeles musicians including guitarist Paul Jackson Jr, bassist John B. Williams, and pianist Josh Nelson. The album is produced by Mark Cargill.
A popular and youthful jazz singer, Amber Weekes has released her first Christmas album, The Gathering. She utilizes Mark Cargill’s arrangements for a cast of top Los Angeles-based musicians including pianists Josh Nelson, Tony Campodonico, and Eddy Olivieri, bassists John B. Williams, Adam Cohen, and Kevin Brandon, drummers Fritz Wise, Sinclair Lott, and Nathaniel Scott, guitarists Paul Jackson, Jr, Doug MacDonald, and Jacques Lesure, tenor-saxophonist Rickey Woodard, trumpeter Andrew Carney, and a string section. She performs consistently stimulating versions of Yuletide favorites plus a few surprises.
The set begins with a cheerful rendition of “The Christmas Waltz” that puts the focus on Amber Weekes’ beautiful voice. “I’ll Be Home For Christmas” includes the rarely heard verse, has a spot for Paul Jackson Jr’s guitar, and is given a light bossa-nova treatment that is worthy of Shirley Horn. The Rodgers and Hart classic “My Romance” has Ms. Weekes displaying a great deal of warmth while singing out-of-tempo, creating a dreamlike atmosphere. “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus” is taken as a swinger with excellent statements from Woodard’s tenor and pianist Campodonico. “Some Children See Him” has a tender vocal and a prominent spot for Ernie Fields Jr’s haunting bagpipes. A joyful “What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve” and an exuberant “Winter Wonderland” precede a sweet version of “Silent Night” that is filled with quiet emotion and fine playing by Nelson on keyboards. A carefree “Let It Snow” and the soulful and festive Christmas original “The Gathering” (which has an impressive violin solo from Mark Cargill) conclude the memorable program.
Amber Weekes was born in Los Angeles to a pair of singers whose heritage as Harlemites was an important influence. A vocalist from an early age, she has sung in countless number of Southern California clubs and venues and performed at the New Rochelle Jazz Festival in New York and Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas. Amber studied singing with such teachers as Gwendolyn Wyatt, Phil Moore Jr, Catherine Hansen, Sue Fink, and, most importantly, Sue Raney. She made her recording debut with her ’Round Midnight album and recently released Pure Imagination. A delightful presence in Southern California’s jazz scene, Amber Weekes’ memorable voice, versatility, and expressive style make her one to watch and The Gathering a Christmas jazz album that one should not miss.
Track Listing:
1. The Christmas Waltz 3:44
2. I’ll Be Home For Christmas 4:36
3. My Romance (Christmas Mix) 3:29
4. I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus 3:35
5. Some Children See Him 5:51
6. What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve? 5:01
7. Winter Wonderland 3:12
8. Silent Night 3:42
9. Let It Snow 3:20
10. The Gathering 4:18
Personnel:
Amber Weekes: vocals, backing vocals
John B. Williams: bass
Kevin Brandon: bass
Adam Cohen: bass (4)
Doug MacDonald: guitar
Jacques Lesure: guitar (6)
Paul Jackson Jr.: guitar (2)
Eddy Olivieri: piano
Josh Nelson: piano
Tony Campodonico: piano, keyboards
Rickey Woodard: saxophone (4, 7)
Andrew Carney: trumpet (1, 9)
Richard Heath: percussion
Munyungo Jackson: percussion (2)
Ernie Fields, Jr.: bagpipes (5)
Mark Cargill: string & horn arrangements, violin (10)
Nathaniel Scott: drums
Fritz Wise: drums
Sinclair Lott: drums
Nio Wilson: background vocals
Marcus D. Cargill: background vocals
JoAnn Tominaga: background vocals
Gregory Cook: celeste
Producer: Mark Cargill
Review:
From Ray Charles to Prince to the pop artists of today, there is a long history of mixing sacred and secular concepts within a musical program. Jazz vocalist Amber Weekes continues that approach with The Gathering, which includes romantic and religious numbers—both of which she handles with aplomb.
At the conclusion of “The Christmas Waltz,” accompanied by Andrew Carney’s muted trumpet, she slides into a sultry whisper to coo, “Why don’t you bring me something from Tiffany’s/ Fill my stocking.” Weekes also uses a breathy recitation to describe a romantic dinner with champagne during the closing moments of “What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve?” On this 10-track album, she takes a detour from the Yuletide canon for “My Romance,” the Rodgers & Hart showtune that has been recorded by pianists Dave Brubeck and Bill Evans, as well as numerous vocalists, including Carly Simon (who made it the title track for her 1990 album of standards).
Elsewhere, Weekes celebrates the sacred themes of the season with a string-sweetened reading of “Silent Night”—featuring fine work on piano and Fender Rhodes by Josh Nelson—and with her powerful version of Alfred Burt’s modern carol “Some Children See Him.” The latter tune, which features tender bagpipe tones from Ernie Fields Jr., is the album’s highlight, a song that intertwines a religious message with an implied call for racial unity in 2020.
Weekes wrote the lyrics for the title track, featuring children’s voices—an element that will be cloying to some listeners, pure catnip to others—but the second verse contains a message that everyone can embrace: “Have you turned your back on someone/ And left them without dignity?/ Now’s the time to gather courage/ And help them to be free/ Have you seen another suffer/ And given to her no sign of care?/ Gather up your deep compassion … .” Producer and violinist Mark Cargill’s compelling solo reinforces the impact of this heartfelt message.
Bobby Reed (DownBeat)
