Alex
Pangman
They Say...
Much
like Squirrel Nut Zippers chanteuse Katharine Whalen, 24-year-old
newcomer Alex Pangman has the kind of distinctive voice ideally
suited to the hot jazz and traditional swing songs of the 1920s,
'30s and '40s. On her debut CD, They Say... (Sensation
Records), she charms the listener through 15 covers with her sweet
'n' sassy, slightly gritty vocal style.
The
album was recorded in a series of one-takes, and it occasionally
shows. But Pangman's heartfelt vocals and the superb hornwork
by Richard Sudhalter on trumpet and Steve Mellor on clarinet overcome
the spartan production on the opening track, "Sing You Sinners."
Other standout performances include John Royan's piano solo on
"Without that Man," Jeff Healey's delicate guitar picking
on "We Three," and Colin Bray on bass in Irving Berlin's
"Let Yourself Go." And there is no way you can help
but sing along on familiar standards like "Daddy Won't You
Please Come Home" and 'Three Little Words."
Inspired
by artists such as Ella Fitzgerald and Bessie Smith, Alex Pangman
more than does justice to the ladies of jazz who went before her.
It's no wonder she has been dubbed "Canada's Sweetheart of
Swing."
-Leslie
Rosenberg
Visit
the band online at www.alexpangman.com
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