Found by Jennifer Ryan

13 Feb

Written by Richard Bourcier
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The Toronto based vocalist was born in British Columbia thirty years ago. With her jazz group, Cash Cow, Jennifer Ryan has appeared at jazz festivals in Canada and the USA. She spent 1998 teaching and performing in Seoul, South Korea.

The group is quite fearless and doesn't hesitate to apply daring new techniques to older material. Their approach is really refreshing and Jennifer's gospel tinged voice is rich, powerful and innovative. The band gives the traditional "Comin' Through The Rye" a whole new look. John Coltrane inspired their twelve-minute treatment of the blended Nature Boy/ Afro Blue showpiece.

Jennifer and Cash Cow enjoy a lot of radio play on Canada's national network, the CBC and their appearance at the 2000 Ottawa International Jazz Festival was a feature event resulting in rave reviews by the Ottawa press.

Bassist Jordan O'Connor is certainly the other half of the vocalist's inventive mind and the two blend like ham and eggs. Pianist Craig Harley and drummer Nick Fraser complete the very tight marriage of voice and instrumentation.

The experimentation doesn't stop with "Comin' Through The Rye" but forges on with "You Are My Sunshine", an old cowboy song. The sounds of David French's solid tenor sax are added to five of the eleven tracks. Those who have not heard David's contemporary sounds are in for a treat. Dave is a "no holds barred" player with every note pushing into unexplored territory.

Good stuff!

Additional Info

Artist / Group Name: Jennifer Ryan
CD Title: Found
Genre: Jazz Vocals
Year Released: 2000
Record Label: The Breath Records
Musicians: Jennifer Ryan (vocals); Jordan OConnor (bass); Craig Harley (piano); Nick Fraser (drums) with guest David French (tenor sax) on 5 tracks.'
Label Website: -
Rating: Five Stars