Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Tracye Eileen: You Hit The Spot

Tracye Eileen: You Hit The Spot

By Richard J Salvucci
December 3, 2022
View read count

The death of the Great American Songbook as a vehicle for aspiring singers is sometimes announced. Someone should tell the singers. Because this season alone has seen a crop of good recordings, most of them reviewed in AAJ, and very favorably so in the main.

Tracye Eileen

vocals

" data-original-title="" title="">Tracye Eileen, a Chicago vocalist with roots in the jazz community, continues the stream to good effect.

While the recording is rather brief at 29 minutes, and the live section suggests an after-the-fact decision to go for a full-blown recording, neither reflects on the quality of the vocals, the band, the arrangements, or even the production. Eileen has a voice that recalls the edgy vibrato of some swing brass players, which is all to the good. There is something about her delivery that recalls

Nancy Wilson

vocals
1937 - 2018

" data-original-title="" title="">Nancy Wilson, as much in her emotional impact as in any stylistic similarity. While looking for labels tempts a listener to label her a belter, "The End of a Love Affair" is more of a scorching torch song, and a good one.

"This Can't Be Love" moves along smartly, and features a good bass solo on a recording in which the bassists,

Stewart Miller

bass

" data-original-title="" title="">Stewart Miller and

Paul Martin

saxophone, baritone
b.1992

" data-original-title="" title="">Paul Martin, are conspicuously musical. "The Very Thought of You," is, well, thoughtful. "Just in Time" has Eileen singing the verse, and changing the feel of the entire tune, aside from hitting it straight on the beat on the way out, which is different too. "Almost Like Being in Love" strikes a Latin note, and one almost wishes Eileen had switched into straight swing midway through the first chorus for contrast, but that is entirely the artist's choice. When she sings "I Love Being Here With You," she is persuasive, and sounds as if she is pushing the band rather than vice versa.

Hard to find much to quibble with, other than the relative brevity of the recording. But maybe that is all to the good, because listening to more of Tracye Eileen is certainly an attractive idea.

Learn more about our star rating system

Track Listing

I Love Being Here with You; You Hit the Spot; They Can��t Take That Away from Me; Almost Like Being in Love; The Very Thought of You; Just in Time; This Can��t Be Love; The End of a Love Affair.

Personnel

Tracye Eileen

vocals

Jeremy Kahn

piano

Jon Deitemyer

drums

Stewart Miller

bass

Steve Eisen

flute

Raphael Crawford

trombone

Victor Garcia

trumpet

Dennis Luxion

keyboards

Paul Martin

saxophone, baritone

Album information

Title: You Hit The Spot | Year Released: 2022 | Record Label: Self Produced

Tracye Eileen �� You Hit The Spot

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Markus Reuter
< Previous

Syria Mosque Pittsburgh, PA January ...
Next >

Support All About Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.