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Quinn Lemley
Dance or Die!


Quinn Lemley’s third production, Dance or Die!, might sound like a commandment for some kamikaze lindy hopping inebriate, and indeed, this album is powered with pulse-pounding rhythms. Almost all the tracks are unique, innovative compositions, courtesy of pianist and producer Bob McDowell. The Lemley/McDowell union is perfect, as Quinn wields her partner’s lyrics with more accuracy than Mata Hari and with deadlier deliverance than Salome.  Her singing blends the sophistication and personality of a cabaret chanteuse with the kind of free-spirited sense of fun exhibited by Bette Midler, making Lemley a genre unto herself. Some of the tunes on this disc are fast, clean swingers with complicated arrangements, while others are swanky little musical episodes snatched from a jazz set. Still others are best enjoyed while luxuriating on your favorite beanbag at home, to the music of ice playing against the side of a hi-ball glass.The covers, especially, are wonderfully rendered. Just listen how Quinn both out-growls and out-purrs Ann Margret on her version of “Thirteen Men.”

Lemley sings with the same marrow-chilling quality as ‘50s doyennes June Christy and Julie London. Unlike these singers, though, Lemley doesn’t exhale her lyrics; her bright, high-pitched voice cuts to the soul like a heart-bound surgical scalpel. Quinn also unabashedly quickens the listener’s pulse with unbridled sex appeal (like Anita O’Day) by way of spicy style and flirtatious lyrics, which have undoubtedly prompted male audience members to pound at her dressing room door after a live set, insisting she finish what she started. Lemley (or, as she likes to call herself, “Trouble wrapped in Givenchy”) will undoubtedly ignite your stereo system and send your libido into orbit around the moon.

Visit the band at www.quinnlemley.com

- Giancarlo Davis 



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Flying Neutrinos—Hotel Child
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Peggy Cone—Bad Girl Shoes
Quinn Lemley—Dance or Die!
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Sammy Davis Jr.—Sammy & Friends
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