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     With her intoxicatingly warm vocals, Vanessa Rubin gives jazzy treatments to such R&B classics as "With You I'm Born Again" on her latest album, New Horizons.  

USA Today Life,        
Friday, August 1, 1997

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New York Post,
Jazz Review,    
August 4, 1997 
By Chip Deffaa

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     Vanessa has been recording traditional jazz albums standards and ballads to warm acclaim.  For her latest album, New Horizons, she reaches for just that with material more "contemporary smooth" than what she is known for by working with Grammy award winning producer, Andre Fischer.  ...it is clear Ms. Rubin is destined to woo some fans with this.  It's called progress.

The Urban Network
August 8, 1997       

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Free Press, August 9, l997
Renarda Williams

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The Washington Post, December 5, 1997
Geoffrey Himes

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The Jazz Singer, Spring 1998
By Bobby Jackson

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  The vibraphonist's (Jay Hoggard) HJS (Hartford Jazz Society) program gave special emphasis to an often-neglected segment of Duke's musical legacy, but not at the expense of his more popular fare.  Vanessa Rubin took on more than a few Ellington hits with the quintet during the second half of both sets.  Her engaging stage presence, exceptional scat singing and most importantly, ability to "become" whomever or whatever she's singing about, link Rubin closely to the great jazz vocalists of the past.  But she is no anachronism: the woman can match or top any of her contemporaries when it comes to reaching an audience.  The May 23 guest stint with Jay Hoggard's band provided further proof of that.
     Rubin's' rendition of one of Ellington's best known tunes, "In a Sentimental Mood," bore little resemblance, besides its tempo, to the original.   Here the singer took on the pulse of a horn soloist slurring words, bending notes, modulating the melody as she improvised chorus after inspired chorus.  Purists might have balked at such a treatment, but the crowd at the Ramada Inn loved it.  She was just as daring, and just as successful, on up-tempo numbers like "Take the A Train."  The last piece Rubin did with the Hoggard quintet, "David Danced Before the Lord," showcased her ability to respectively convey a broad range of emotion, one moment imparting a solemn prayer for freedom the next, celebratory shouts of praise and gratitude.  Vanessa Rubin has a new release on Telarc Jazz called Language of Love which features her unique interpretations of a couple Ellington favorites.

The Greenmountain Jazz Messenger - July/August '99
By Chuck Obuchowski

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        Vanessa Rubin has never received the attention that Cassandra Wilson, Dianne Reeves or Diana Krall have, despite being regularly lauded by many of the wise old instrumental heads in jazz. Here she embraces classic material , the likes of "Love for Sale," "I Didn't Know About You," "If I Should Lose You," "Everytime We Say Goodbye," and "The Summer Knows" among the 11 tracks.  Her good company this time out includes pianist George Colligan, bassist Richie Goods, drummer Dwayne "Cook" Broadnax, and special guests Billy Higgins on drums, Freddy Cole on vocals, and Henry Johnson on guitar.   Rubin and company freshen up the familiars with clever arrangements and melodious playing.  Clearly more comfortable in this environment than in the R&B crossover realm that's intrigued her in the 1990s, Rubin has a jazzy lilt back in her voice.   Of special note is her unusual treatment of the classic "Corcovado," taken at a languid tempo that allows the lyrics to breathe, bringing a new level of aching, longing pathos to Antonio Carlos Jobim's exquisite tune, perhaps a nod to Rubin's slow-singing Cleveland homeboy Jimmy Scott. Throughout the record, pianist Colligan's role is a key, his accompaniment doing more to increase Rubin's sense of challenge than merely making things comfortable.

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     On her sixth album, Rubin returns to her jazz roots, sing a collection of standards but not always with the standard approach.  She gives sometimes surprising treatment to much-sung songs by the likes of Cole Porter, Duke Ellington, Johnny Mercer and Antonio Carlos Jobim and gives them a freshness and re-newed vigor.  She also leaves plenty of space for her trio of pianist George Colligan, bassist Richie Goods and drummer Dwayne Broadnax to make their own pointed statements.  The surprises come in the way that they speak back forth.

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     Its' become a truism in jazz that vocalists take longer to develop and master their art than instrumentalists.  Vanessa Rubin, who was the headliner at the third of four weekly Jazz at the Plaza outdoor concerts in East Orange, is a case in point.
     Rubin was given the new star treatment when she signed with a major label RCA/Novus, later RCA/BMG in 1992.  In five years she released as many albums, some straight-ahead jazz, others aimed at crossover/R&B and smooth jazz market.  But to these ears, she was an inadequate singer on most of those recordings, with a strident tone and a lack of rhythmic flexibility.
     Judging by her performance in East Orange - despite sound system flaws - and even more by "Language of Love" (Telarc), her new album on a new, smaller label, Rubin is maturing artistically into a fine jazz singer.
     Even early in her set fighting an over amplified piano and doing one of her crossover R&B songs from an early album, "Born Again," Rubin maintained an admirable rhythmic flow and played with the melody with the instincts of a jazz singer.
     As the sound system was adjusted, Rubin moved to a five-song mini-set of Ellingtonia that proved to be the highlight of her show. "I Didn't Know About You," a Duke Ellington ballad (with lyrics by Bob Russell) is finally gaining recognition as one of his finest as more singers record and perform it.  Rubin put a new spirit on it, singing it to a light bossa nova beat, courtesy of an arrangement by her pianist, George Colligan.  His arrangement of "Caravan" was equally inventive, using stop-time and a funky back-beat instead of the usual Afro-Latin rhythms.
     Rubin brought a nice mix of jazz phrasing and gospel melismatic embellishments to Ellington's great spiritual theme, "Come Sunday" from the monumental "Black, Brown & Beige."  She also used it to bracket "David Danced Before the Lord, With All His Might," the up-tempo version of the same melody Ellington added to his Sacred Concerts.  The Ducal set concluded with another imaginative arrangement, this one taking "In A Sentimental Mood" into modal jazz territory.
     Rubin relaxed into the rest of her set, stretching out "Tenderly" and Stevie Wonder's "Where Were You When I Needed You?" with scat singing and a sensuously undulating vamp coda, respectively, "Love for Sale" became, as it often does in jazz, a rhythmic showcase, Rubin romping through it at accelerated swing tempo.
     "The Summer Knows" was delivered with supple grace and lyrical subtlety by Rubin with just Colligan's piano accompaniment.  She ended with an expansive, rolling mid-tempo version of "Speak Low," delivered with Afro-Latin rhythmic accents.

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In the past, critics have been quick to praise Vanessa Rubin's pleasant voice, while either pointing out that she's not much of an improviser, or asserting that she doesn't have a spectacular voice. To Rubin's credit -- and like Nancy Wilson -- she's always had a clear idea of what she can do, and she's maximized those talents. Rubin sings jazz standards as
proficiently as anyone out there, and Girl Talk is a strong outing precisely because she has chosen the right material.

Rubin is particularly appealing on bluesy numbers, and she absolutely shines on the Harold Arlen/Johnny Mercer song "One for My Baby." With a basic piano/bass/drums trio behind her, Rubin takes possession of the lyric Frank Sinatra made famous -- but her depth of emotion, and the way she bends her phrases, makes it a woman's torch song. (And pianist Larry Willis' subtle solo is a fine accent to her vocal.)

Rubin's voice has a lovely timbre, and she sings in an open, rich style, with razor-sharp articulation. In a more up tempo mood, as on "Won't Have to Say Goodbye," it's easy to hear how her precision allows her to swing the song, running phrases together, and allowing for a cool rhythmic attack -- yet every word is clear.

The most different song on the album is certainly "Sex Is a Misdemeanor (The More You Miss De Meaner You Get)," given a snappy calypso treatment with bassist David Williams and drummer Lewis Nash. Rubin clearly had a good time cutting the tune -- a shrewd, change-of-pace track, in the midst of so many love and out-of-love songs.

Girl Talk is quite purposefully a woman's take on love and heartbreak -- with a cautionary tale about the perils of celibacy thrown in for good measure. Vanessa Rubin can sing you a love song and make it memorable, and that's what this "girl talk" is all about.

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    The "Girl Talk" theme becomes quite literal when Rubin and fellow singer Etta Jones trade vocals and giggles on "But Not for Me" and "Gee Baby Ain't I Good to You."  The album's finger-snapping swing is generated by bassist David Williams and drummer Lewis Nash, and Eric Alexander's sax solos on "Matchmaker, Matchmaker" and "Whatever Happens" are as sensual as Rubin's leads.

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    Whether singing, scatting or chatting, jazz vocalist Vanessa Rubin sounded as if she were performing for a small group of friends at Blues Alley Monday night.

     The cozy and casual mood was largely inspired by "Girl Talk," the title track on Rubin's new CD. Perched on a stool and sometimes leaning forward as if to share a secret with the audience, Rubin punctuated the Neal Hefti-Bobby Troup song with a few amusing observations about how her gender communicates when men aren't around. The performance was a prime example of how easily Rubin relates to an audience, and it was
bracketed by several jazz and pop standards that proved similarly engaging. Not the least of these was "Matchmaker, Matchmaker," which found Rubin and her trio gracefully moving back and forth between waltz and swing time.

     Some of Rubin's interpretations were surprising. For example, when bassist Richard Goods sustained a low-register motif, Rubin soulfully recast "Corcovado" in ways that made the Jobim tune seem far more haunting than familiar. "Speak Low" also benefited from a fresh arrangement, one that alternately capitalized on Rubin's affinity for hushed balladry and brash, extemporaneous swing. The most unlikely song selection, Stephen Sondheim's "Loving You," revealed the tender beauty of Rubin's voice in a dreamily romantic light.

     Despite some feedback glitches early on, Goods and his band mates -- pianist Aaron Graves and drummer Yoron Israel -- went on to provide Rubin with colorful, close-knit support.

 

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On Girl Talk, Vanessa Rubin runs the gamut of jazz styles and vocal approaches. Ably accompanied by a stellar band of veterans and up-and-comers -- Cedar Walton and Larry Willis on piano, Lewis Nash on drums, Eric Alexander and Javon Jackson on tenor sax, David Williams on bass -- Rubin puts her warm, tuneful stamp on a variety of material. Though wearing her influences on her sleeve -- Ella Fitzgerald, Carmen McRae, Sarah Vaughan, Dakota Staton, and Nancy Wilson -- Rubin nonetheless brings enough personality to make these songs her own. From the jaunty "Matchmaker, Matchmaker" to the sad and dreamy "One for My Baby" to the risqué "Sex Is a Misdemeanor (The More You Miss, De Meaner You Get)".  Rubin exults in her stylistic range and chameleon like voice.  On "But Not for Me" and "Gee, Baby, Ain't I Good to You," she's joined by husky-voiced Etta Jones, who brings some gritty authenticity to the mix. Along with Diana Krall and Cassandra Wilson, Vanessa Rubin shows respect for her predecessors while bringing something fresh to the music. 

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