(Jazz, Vocal Jazz) Kathy Kosins - To The Ladies of Cool - 2012, MP3, 192-320 kbps

Kathy Kosins To the Ladies of Cool Review by Scott Yanow
"Kathy Kosins’ tribute To The Ladies Of Cool pays homage to June Christy, Chris Connor, Anita O’Day and Julie London, but not in an obvious way. Ms. Kosins does not make any attempt to copy any of the four singers (all of whom were in their prime in the 1950s) and her slightly heavier voice is distinctive in its own right. While she mostly performs material on this project that was recorded by one or more of the singers, their most famous tunes are not here and some of the numbers (such as “Nightbird,” “Don’t Wait Up for Me” and “November Twilight”) are obscure. So her tribute is really more to their legacy rather than direct emulation. In any case, this is an excellent effort that will be enjoyed by fans of those singers. Pianist Tamir Hendelman, who also contributed all of the arrangements, is joined in the sextet by the powerful saxophonist Steve Wilkerson (long an underrated great in the L.A. area), trumpeter Gilbert Castellanos, guitarist Graham Dechter, drummer Bob Leatherbarrow and either Kevin Axt or Paul Keller on bass. Kathy Kosins sounds jubilant on “Hershey’s Kisses” (a Johnny Mandel song for which she wrote the lyrics), revives “Learnin’ The Blues,” and is appropriately sly on “Kissing Bug.” To The Ladies Of Cool (available from www.resonancerecords.org) is one of her most appealing recordings so far."
Scott Yanow - LA Jazz Scene

Kevin Axt - Bass
Gilbert Castellanos - Flugelhorn, Trumpet
Graham Dechter - Guitar
Judy Elyias - Cover Photo
Will Friedwald - Liner Notes
Fran Gala - Engineer, Mastering, Mixing Engineer
B. Goodman - Composer
Tamir Hendelman - Arranger, Piano
W. Hirsch - Composer
Paul Keller - Bass
George Klabin - Engineer, Executive Producer, Mixing Engineer
Kathy Kosins - Liner Notes, Primary Artist, Producer, Vocals
Bob Leatherbarrow - Drums, Vibraphone
Johnny Mandel - Quotation Author
Silvers - Composer
Steve Wilkerson - Woodwind