1. I Didnt Know What Time It Was 
2. What A Little Moonlight Can Do 
3. Dont Explain 		play
4. God Bless The Child 
5. Strange Fruit 		play
6. Willow Weep For Me 
7. Balm In Gilead 
8. Them There Eyes 
9. Only You Will Know 
10. Youve Changed 
11. Now Or Never 
12. Lover Man 
13. Left Alone 
14. Interlude - Little Brown Bird 
15. All Of Me

Personnel: 
Nnenna Freelon: vocals; 
Brandon McCune: piano: 
Fender Rhodes: Hammond B-3: trumpet; 
Wayne Batchelor: acoustic bass; 
Kinah Boto: drums; 
Beverly Botsford: percussion; 
Christian Scott: trumpet (1,2,8); 
Mary Fettig: alto and baritone saxes: alto flute (1,2); 
Dave Ellis (1,2,12) and Doug Lawrence (10,11): tenor sax; 
Julian Lage (3,8,11,15) and Andre Bush (9, duet with Nnenna): guitar; 
Jessica Ivry: cello (3,8).

Nnenna Freelon's latest project pays tribute to singer Billie Holiday in the best possible way—without imitation and putting her own interpretations on material written by or associated with Lady Day. Her band, adjusted to fit the mood of each song, skillfully complements her at every turn. Freelon's phrasing and vocal clarity contribute to an overall feeling that is more positive than Holiday's often dark and plaintive renditions of the same material.

Interspersed within this tribute are three natural fits that don't come directly from the Holiday Songbook. "Only You Will Know and "Interlude-Little Brown Bird are original collaborations by Freelon and Brandon McCune that pay homage to Lady Day. The former, an intimate vocal-guitar duet with Andre Bush, enables Freelon to question aloud whether she should imitate Holiday's style or approach the project's material in a different manner. Holiday's answer in this imagined vocal dialogue was: "Sing until you know who you are and why you came... You may sing a Lady song, sweet drawl soft and low/but only if the song is you and only you will know.

The third is "Balm in Gilead —a traditional African-American affirmation of faith, hope and optimism that enriches all of the other material. This duo version on which Freelon is accompanied by pianist McCune, leads into an uplifting and vibrant version of "Them There Eyes.

Doug Lawrence's tenor sax offers a sublime conversational response to Freelon's vocals on "You've Changed and takes a different role on "Now Or Never by reinforcing and at times echoing her voice. Dave Ellis takes a more out-in-front complementary tenor role on the bluesy and soulful version of "Lover Man that follows. Julian Lage's guitar artistry sparkles throughout "Don't Explain and on several other tracks.

"Left Alone presents a Holiday work she never recorded. Lady Day wrote it with the late Mal Waldron. Abbey Lincoln was the first vocalist to record the tune—in 1961. Freelon's vocals plus quartet version unearths the positives buried beneath Holiday's words about loneliness. "All of Me concludes this fine session with another twist—a sultry reggae arrangement of the classic ballad. --- Ken Franckling

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01. The Lamp Is Low
02. I Feel Pretty
03. The Very Thought Of You
04. Theme From Valley Of The Dolls
05. Smile
06. You And The Night And The Music
07. Cell Phone Blues
08. Get Out Of Town
09. Skylark
10. Lift Every Voice And Sing
11. America The Beautiful

Nnenna Freelon - Arranger, Composer, Vocals
Kinah Ayah - Arranger, Drums, Guitar
Wayne Batchelor - Bass (Acoustic), Bass (Electric)
Beverly Botsford - Percussion
John Brown - Bass (Acoustic)
Ray Codrington - Flugelhorn
Pierce Freelon - Arranger, Rap
Timothy Holley - Cello
Brandon McCune - Arranger, Fender Rhodes, Piano
Scott Sawyer - Guitar
Ira Wiggins - Sax (Tenor)

Nnenna Freelon can be spotted miles off, like neon or a rainbow. The tall, rawboned, outspoken gal from Cambridge, MA via North Carolina owns a musical persona as unique as her name. She nails her ancient/modern, genre-jumping repertoire, embraces it, inhabits it organically and belts it with a hearty, emphatic attack.

You can tell her from a phrase—even a note—as she goes merrily variegating vowels, taffy-pulling syllables, signifying scat sounds (gong-gong), sing-songing exit vamps; check her risqué post-play on "The Lamp Is Low."

She and her working band of 10 years—Brandon McCune (piano), Wayne Batchelor (bass), Kinah Ayah (drums) and Beverly Botsford (percussion)—mess with usual tempos ("Smile" as breezy Latin) and keys ("I Feel Pretty" in minor). They gleefully reinvent Tin Pan Alley, here skanking up Cole Porter's "Get Out Of Town" as reggae and Dietz-Schwartz' "You and the Night and the Music," over a slow slinky vamp. Freelon sometimes lobs original blues bombs, wry comments on contemporary mores: she recasts an old favorite ("Future News Blues") in a personal tweet at her quick-twittering-but-not-so-handy man in "Cell Phone Blues."

Even with all that, expect the unexpected. Freelon can wear down the unwary, lazy listener, in her persistent quest to rediscover tunes, with her indefatigable energy. Witness her closing three tracks. She turns "Skylark" from jazz hymn into a bluesy, cantankerous one-on-one with Wayne Batchelor's bass that Hoagy Carmichael and Johnny Mercer—even Carmen McRae—might dig (her devoted version with strings came in 1992, big-budget Butler days at Columbia). She transforms the gospel song "Lift Every Voice and Sing" with a bit of scat over a respectful rap cameo by her son, Pierce. Her angular, salty "America The Beautiful," with cello sweetening, takes the disc out with an uneasy feeling. Freelon's compelling, searching artistry never lets up, yet leaves you with more grins than furrowed brows, with more questions than answers. ---Fred Bouchard, allaboutjazz.com

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