Nancy Kelly, Vocals,
John DiMartino, Piano, Arranger and Producer
Randy Brecker, Trumpet, Flugelhorn, 1,5,8
Bobby Militello, Soprano, Alto, Flute, 1,4,5,6,7,8,9
Paul Bollenback, Electric Guitar 3,4
Paul Meyers, Acoustic Guitar 1,2,6
Ed Howard, Electric and Acoustic bass
Carmen Intorre Jr, Drums and Percussion
Peter Mack, Co-Executive Producer. bass 10
Steve Brown guitar, conga.10
Recorded October 16 and 17, 2017, Trading 8's Studio Paramus, NJ
Vocals and final mix SubCat Studios, Syracuse NY
"This Could be the Start of Something Good"
Peter Mack, Bass, Steve Brown Guitar, Conga. Recorded at SubCat Studios January 2018
People often ask me who my favorite singer is, and my answer is always, without hesitation, Mark Murphy. He was “the real deal.” With Mark’s passing, I was moved to honor him musically with this recording.
I joined musical forces with pianist John DiMartino on this project. He too is a huge Mark Murphy fan and we are very excited to see this endeavor take on its own life. You certainly won't need to be a Mark fan to be moved by the music I’ve chosen for this recording.
Mark’s music went through many changes as he grew and matured. I've recorded the songs that most affected me over the years as an artist. These compositions nourished me and gave birth to my jazz soul.
Mark grew up in Fulton, NY, not far from Fair Haven NY, where I’ve been living for many years. After getting to know him on and off the bandstand, I was thrilled to find out he spent many summers with his family in Fair Haven and he adored Little Sodus Bay, which inspired him to write the lyrics to “Song for the Geese.” The song has a profound place in my heart. As I worked on developing this recording, I gazed out my window on the bay and drew love and inspiration.
Some cuts we chose are Mark Murphy classics. Randy Brecker joined us for Body and Soul, Red Clay and Vera Cruz, and as he did on Mark's original recordings of these tracks.
When John and I developed the material, we agreed to keep the integrity of some of these numbers while I joyfully took liberties with some of the others.
Nancy Kelly Vocals
Jerry Weldon Tenor Sax
Dino Losito Hammond Organ
Peter Bernstein Guitar
Carmen Intorre Drums
© 2014 BlueBay records
1. Come Back To Me 4:08 (Burton Lane, Alan Jay Lerner)
2. Don’t Explain 5:10 (Billie Holiday, Arthur Herzog Jr.)
3. Common Touch 5:29 (S. Hurt , D. Burns)
4. Billie’s Bounce 5:09 (Charlie Parker, Jon Hendricks)
5. Here’s Looking At You 5:31 (Carroll Coates)
6. The Great City 4:39 (Curtis Lewis)
7. Don’t Go To Strangers 5:32 (Redd Evans, Arthur Kent,. Dave Mann)
8. Day In Day Out 3:58 (Johnny Mercer, Rube Bloom)
9. Don’t Worry ‘Bout Me 4:48 (Rube Bloom, Ted Koehler)
10.Please Don’t Talk About Me When I’m Gone 4:23 (Sam H. Stept, Sidney Clare)
11. The Very Thought Of You 6:12 (Ray Noble)
12. Good Morning Heartache 6:04 (Dan Fisher, Irene Higginbotham, Ervin Drake)
The B3 has been in my life from the very early days of my career. It was there throughout my musical evolution from Rock to R&B and on to jazz.
In the early Eighty’s, I moved to Philly and began singing at the “Salt and mostly Pepper” jazz club,” Jewels” on Broad St where for almost 5 years I was the house singer with organ trio made up of local Philly cats. At the time I didn’t know it but I was at B3 jazz ground zero. Jewel’s was host to headliners such as Groove Holmes, Jack McDuff, Jimmy McGriff ,Shirley Scott and local favorite Trudy Pitts and a very young Joey Defrancesco . I was in heaven. The organ trio sound had now become a major part of my musical fiber. We had a good long run at Jewels sadly, years later the club closed and for various reasons, I moved back to upstate New York.
I spent the next era with piano. One day on a trio gig, Dino Losito used the organ sound on his keyboard and we both knew where we were headed. We loved it and dove into the sound working solely organ trio for the past 6 years which to this recording.
Houston Person Tenor Sax
Dino Losito Piano and Fender Rhodes
Neal Miner Bass
Mark Taylor Drums
© 2006 Amherst records
1.I've Got The World on a string
2.Like Someon In Love
3.You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To
4.More Than You Know
5.Falling in Love with
6.Let Me Off Uptown
7.Didn't We
8.Come Rain or Come shine
9.I'll Be Seeing You
10.Watch What Happens
11.New York State of Mind
12.Lets Talk Business
"The album makes clear that you're the real thing, and in an age of too many jazz-vocal poseurs, that's pretty damned refreshing" Neil Tesser
"Miss Kelly has paid her dues in the jazz genre and as a result she has developed into one of the major forces in this idiom, perhaps the best off them all". John Gilbert EjazzNews.com
Nancy Kelly
Bobby Militello Alto
Bobby Jones Piano
Rod Blumenaue Piano
Danny D'Imperio Drums
Steve Curry Drums
Steve Brown Guitar
Joe Carello Alto and Tenor
Jeff Jarvis Trumpet
John Nyerges, Piano
Dino Losito Piano
Paul Laduca Upright Bass
Ron France Electric Bass
Brian Murphy Vibes
Phew! That's a lot of cats! (-:
Amherst Records, 1997
1.Till There Was You
2. That's All
3. The Joint is Jumpin
4.At Long Last Love
5.Young and Foolish
6. It's Alright With Me
7. Slow Boat to China
8. Stormy Weather
9.I Concentrate on You
10. Through the Fire
11. Jeannine
12.Come In From the Rain
I decided to record several different feels. Each track has a different mood rather than all done in the same style. The performance varies from a Bossa Nova version of "That's All "to a powerful cover of Chaka Kahns "Through the Fire," and a driving treatment of Duke Pearson?s hard bop classic "Jeannine" Check out Fats Wallers,"The Joint is Jumpin" A mind boggling, one take stride piano performance by Rod Blumenau. The CD features inspired playing by saxophonist Bobby Militello,Joe Carello Trumpeter Jeff Jarvis, vibraphonist Brian Murphy and Pianist Bobby Jones.
Nancy Kelly - vocal
Houston Person - tenor saxophone
Randy Halberstadt – piano
Jeff Johnson – bass
Gary Hobbs – drums
1. But Not For Me 4:33
2. I Wish You Love 5:06
3. Who Can I Turn To 5:51
4. I Only Have Eyes For You 4:56
5. I Love Being Here With You 4:12
6. Let’s Fall In Love 4:00
7. For Once In My Life 5:54
8. Alright, Okay, You Win 6:02
9. Since I Fell For You 5:32
10. Let It Be Me 6:35
11. Fine And Mellow 6:42
Producer - Joan Merrill, Saying It With Jazz
Recorded at Bake’s Place, Issaquah, Washington, November 22-23, 2008
Thanks to: Craig and Laura Baker, CNY Jazz Arts Foundation
© 2009 Saying It With Jazz, 15600 NE 8th St. Ste. B-1, Bellevue, WA 98008
Nancy Kelly's debut CD on Amherst Records "Live Jazz" reached #11 on the BILLBOARD
Top Jazz Charts.
Nancy Kelly (vocals),
Biff Hannon (piano),
Tom Warrington (bass),
Peter Erskine (drums),
Ernie Watts (tenor sax)
Recorded in Hollywood and released in late 1988, this CD reached number 11 on the Billboard charts.
1. Since I fell For You
2. Twisted
3. Somewhere
4. But Not For Me
5. Yesterdays
6.Over The Rainbow
7. Lover Man
8.Almost Like Being In Love
9. I Wish You Love
Discover the spontaneity of digital jazz as Nancy breaths new life into classic Jazz Standard favorites with help, from some of today?s most prestigious and accomplished musicians. From swing to sultry ballads, Nancy demonstrates her incredible ability from start to finish.
Ernie Watt?s ripping sax embellishes each track with fiery and distinctive sounds. Ex Weather Report drummer Peter Erskin leads the rhythm section of Biff Hannon (Piano) and Tom Warrington (Bass) with unparalleled precision and excitement.
I am sorry to say this recording is out of print. You can download here or on Bandcamp or Apple Music and Amazon
Buying the hard copy CD directly supports Nancy however all CD's are available for download on here or on
iTunes and Amazon.