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Emilia M?rtensson: Ana

By Mark Corroto
March 25, 2014
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Jazz does indeed reside in one large house these days. Thanks to the world travels of

Don Cherry

trumpet
1936 - 1995

" data-original-title="" title="">Don Cherry and

" data-original-title="" title="">Randy Weston in the 1960s, the European free movement, The Latin voice, and the indelible mark of ECM Records, jazz has transmuted into folk music. It had to happen, what once was the province of the New Orleans bagnio and the metropolis spread to the rural peoples becoming global. Or, perhaps it was the countryside that has seeped into the city.

That intersection has fostered the Americana sounds in

Bill Frisell

guitar, electric
b.1951

" data-original-title="" title="">Bill Frisell's jazz and the Swedish folk in London- based vocalist Emilia M?rtensson's music. Is it jazz? Yes. Folk? Of course, but it is also pop and traditional song.

Ana follows And So It Goes . . . (Babel, 2012), co- led with pianist Barry Green. While the alt-pop influence is evident throughout, so too is the bond between singer and pianist. Like

Tommy Flanagan

piano
1930 - 2001

" data-original-title="" title="">Tommy Flanagan and

Ella Fitzgerald

vocals
1917 - 1996

" data-original-title="" title="">Ella Fitzgerald or Ralph Sharon's accompaniment of

Tony Bennett

vocals
1926 - 2023

" data-original-title="" title="">Tony Bennett, Green's touch piano is trusted counsel here.

Skillfully arranged with artful touches by The Fable String Quartet, the music is immediately enchanting, bewitching, and approachable. The title track, written for her Slovenian grandmother is a melancholy ballad of remembrance woven with a tinge of kinfolk sound. M?rtensson is a fan of 1970s pop covering, as she did on her previous disc, Paul Simon. Here it is "Everything Put Together Falls Apart" delivered in a spoken/sung bluesy manner not unlike that of

Rickie Lee Jones

vocals

" data-original-title="" title="">Rickie Lee Jones with Green and Brazilain percussionist Adriano Adewale flavoring the blues with authentic spices.

Like all great singers her voice is neither pushed, nor distorted to broadcast her skills. Highlights here include her lyrics to

Joe Henderson

saxophone
1937 - 2001

" data-original-title="" title="">Joe Henderson's "Black Narcissus," reconfigured as a simple folk melody, an a capella sung traditional piece " Vackra Manniska," and the mini- masterpiece "Learnt From Love."

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Track Listing

Harvest Moon; Ana; Learnt From Love; Tomorrow Can Wait; N?r Som Jag Var P? Mitt Adertonde ?r; Black Narcisuss; Everything Put Together Falls Apart; Ana (Reprise); Moffi's Song; Vackra Manniska.

Personnel

Emilia Martensson

vocals

Emilia M?rtensson: vocals; Barry Green: piano; Sam Lasserson: double bass; ?Adriano Adewale: percussion: The Fable String Quartet: Kit Massey: violin; Paloma Deike: violin; Becky Hopkin: viola; ?Natalie Rozario: cello.

Album information

Title: Ana | Year Released: 2014 | Record Label: Babel Label

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