What they are saying about Wild Blue:

“Acclaimed pianist, singer and songwriter, Jeanne Newhall dances freely between folk, pop, r&b, country, and jazz with a classically-trained musician’s ear….and now turns up on Blix Street, the label that launched the late Eva Cassidy to international recognition. Jeanne shares many of Eva’s attributes: a distinctive, emotional voice that gets to the very heart and soul of a lyric...The album opens with a stunning rendition of Bruce Springsteen’s HUNGRY HEART and closes with a jazzy rendition of THESE FOOLISH THINGS, in between are a myriad of musical gems that defy glib classifications and just fall into the essential music category.”
-- Maverick Magazine-Alan Cackett

“Newhall’s artistry is in full flower with her newest release, Wild Blue from Blix Street Records…The 14th album release from this prolific songwriter/pianist/vocalist follows projects across a vast catalog of styles…Although best known as an instrumentalist, her confiding and intimate vocals on Wild Blue are in well-balanced counterpoint to her accomplished playing and intuitive songwriting.”
--Dan Kimpel- Music Connection

“...music likely to appeal to fans of '70s singer/songwriters.”
--William Ruhlmann-All Music Guide

“Newhall’s piano shines both in accompaniment and solo functions.”
--Steven Rosenberg- Los Angeles Daily News

When you pop in “Wild Blue” by Jeanne Newhall you are transformed…. It is nice to hear a solid album from a styling that rarely is played nowadays.
--Alex Lang- The Celebrity Café

“Newhall delivers a selection of original tunes with sylph-like vocals on a par with Phoebe Snow and Joni Mitchell…. While the piano work is intricately performed, it's Newhall's voice which makes this work captivating… her vocals are an instrument unto themselves.
--R.J. Carter- The Trades
Wild Blue Reviews (Page 2)

The vast musical roots of well-respected composer and sophisticated vocalist Jeanne Newhall have impacted jazz and new age music since the late ‘80s. She has a credibility that stems from her back catalogue of thirteen CD’s and her 2001 single, ‘Race Through The Clouds’ that features guitarist Peter White. Equally at home in the studio or on the live stage Jeanne has toured far and wide across the USA and Europe. Originally from Phoenix AZ she now bases herself in Los Angeles where, as well as being actively involved in compositions for film and television, she has just released her latest album ‘Wild Blue’. Running the gamut from sophisticated contemporary vocal jazz through pop, country and evocative folk it’s a collection that for the most part is music on the mellow side but which at times injects emotion that is off the scale.

Seven self penned tracks are sandwiched between two remarkable interpretations of modern classics and the first of these ‘Hungry Heart’ serves as an introduction to Newhall’s delicate vocal skills, her melodic piano and a tight group of backing musicians,. Against all odds this amalgam of ‘Springsteen meets Joni Mitchell’ works beautifully and with Mike Miller playing guitars, Matt McKenzie on bass and John Robinson on drums the project is anchored in acoustic splendor. This ensemble remains consistent throughout and at times is subtly added to with dramatic effect. The cello, with its ability to tug at the heartstrings like no other, is the most melancholy of instruments and here comes courtesy of Stephanie Fife. It lights up the wonderful ‘Ancient’ and brings to mind some of Harry Chapin’s best music while on ‘Still’, with its ripping melodies and Newhall’s
crystal clear tones, Fife returns to add that special something. In the same vein is the stunning ‘Ev’rything But The Sun’ and with the gentle folk – rock inspired ‘This Kind Of Life’ the wild Gaelic violin of Charlie Basharat evokes something of a Ronnie Lane vibe.

The title track is also stitched with the threads of folksy country. It retains all the attributes of Newhall’s vocal clarity while managing to sound like something from the Van Morrison song book. Jeanne keeps it mellow for ‘Red Sky’. This one has a hypnotic yet gentle melody but elsewhere on the album Newhall shows she can up the tempo too. ‘Fallin’ Into You’ is built around an excellent contemporary jazz vibe and a contender for best track is ‘The Real Story’. Jaared Arosemena, a regular with Peter Whites touring band, takes the honors on sax and Newhall’s vocals sound both sexy and jazzy. It’s a super mid tempo track with a melody just out of this world.

‘Wild Blue’ is as diverse as it is excellent and this is epitomized by Newhall’s sensitive handling of the massive jazz standard ‘These Foolish Things’. It provides a fitting end to an album that has something for everyone who appreciates good music and promises to boost the already acclaimed career of Jeanne Newhall.

--Denis Poole-Smooth Jazz Therapy --England

Paris Nights: Jeanne Newhall

Paris Nights' emotional and beautiful songs sensitively arrange piano with bass, percussion, cello, viola, violin, english horn and guitar, enhanced by 4 vocal tracks in French. Paris Nights bows to the artistic sense of love and romance - and strength and freedom - we gratefully share with the French culture.

E-Sensual
Smooth Jazz featuring Joni Mitchells classic "Hissing of Summer Lawns."

Bedouin's Paradise
Smooth Jazz featuring the talents of Kirk Whalum, Paul Jackson Jr. and Peter White.

 

 
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This Kind of Life Video NEW

The Reviews Are In...
Reviews Page 2

Truly a contemporary artist, Jeanne Newhall draws from many musical currents. A classically trained pianist who grew up with Mozart, Bartok and Bach as well as rock ‘n’ roll, folk and pop, her rich, warm vocals and the sophisticated nuances of her piano and arrangements welcome listeners into a shimmering world of words and music.

WILD BLUE is Jeanne Newhall’s much-anticipated debut on independent Blix Street Records. Set for release on August 2, 2006, the album signals new directions for the Los Angeles-based artist, who describes the piano as a “percussion instrument,” confesses to a “fetish for guitars” and grew up watching sunsets in the Arizona skies. “For me–whether I’m singing or playing or composing–music is about life. It’s about living up to my full potential as an artist. It’s about evolution. I don’t know whether I’ve taken a hard right or a hard left on WILD BLUE,” she says, “but I’ve found a new freedom with this album.”

Wild Blue: Jeanne Newhall“WILD BLUE is a master work from a consummate artist—constantly surprising in scope, but cohesively fit together,” says Blix Street Records President Bill Straw. “We jumped at the opportunity to release it.”

Newhall produced and arranged the album and composed seven of its ten tracks. She also gathered together a group of musicians she calls “my musical family” to fill in the notes. Family members include drummers John Robinson Jr. and Dom Moio, guitarists Matt McKenzie and Mike Miller, percussionist Brad Dutz, cellist Stephanie Fife and violinist Charlie Bisharat, whose credits, together, range from Quincy Jones, Ray Charles, Lionel Richie, Maynard Ferguson, Keely Smith and David Benoit to Barbra Streisand, Frank Sinatra, Bette Midler, Steve Winwood, Eric Clapton and Madonna.


Read the article here...

A mix of contemporary and original material, WILD BLUE opens with Bruce Springsteen’s “Hungry Heart” (“I couldn’t resist that song. It got under my skin. There’s so much love in it,” she says,) and closes with “These Foolish Things” (“It’s the kiss at the end.”). Newhall’s poignant, powerful delivery brings a new intimacy to the former’s bittersweet lyrics and indelible melody, and her savvy take on the Marvell & Strachey jazz standard bookend a collection that takes the listener through the borderlands of life and love, heart and soul. The album’s introspective title track was written by Nashville-based Grammy-winner Marcus Hummon. Newhall discovered the song when a friend gave her a cassette with the admonition “You should know about Marcus.”

Seven of the album’s ten songs are Newhall’s own, and each one is a showcase for the versatility of her talents as singer, pianist and writer. She calls the flirty, catchy “Fallin’ Into You” “the most different song on the album—it feeds my R&B side.” The lyrics and melody of the introspective “Ancient” ebb and flow with contemplative musical interludes. “I think ‘Ancient’ is the soul of the album. It swept over me,” she explains. “It came in and said ‘Here’. It feels like a dream because I think life is a dream.” “The Real Story” is, indeed, a real story; Newhall wrote it about a very wordy Scorpio friend. “This Kind of Life” and “Still” were both written on the same Valentine’s Day. She describes the former as “a personal testimony” and ends it on a joyful note with a Sanskrit prayer reflective of her longtime practice of Ashtanga yoga. The rhythm section sets the tone for “Everything But The Sun” and “Red Sky,” and both are examples of the magical interplay between lyrics, notes and voice in a Jeanne Newhall song.

Jeanne Newhall