REVIEWS

Jazz singer Perez celebrated the songs of Frank Sinatra at The Metropolitan Room. She opened the evening with a rendition of “Come Fly with Me.” Taking every opportunity to bring in the audience, smiling intently, her focus just above the horizon line, Perez appears carefree. Wearing a high bun, a short black sequin dress and silver pumps, her look is reminiscent of the 1960s, a heyday for Sinatra fans.

Her performance is particularly sensitive to the songs created while Sinatra was with his second wife, Ava Gardner. Their tumultuous romance made for some astonishing music, interpreted with smoky candor by Perez. Each melody is felt to the core; her voice rich and full of intentionality.

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Perez, yes, she goes by that one name. As a point of reference she was formerly known as Diana Perez. As a jazz vocalist she is paying her dues and gets better with time.

Her recent date at Smoke was filled to capacity, as she demonstrated a fresh perspective to some well-traveled tunes. Her renditions of “Detour Ahead” and “Nature Boy” stood out. While wood-shedding her craft throughout Gotham she has amassed an ever growing fan base. Perez has her own style, a sultry voice, that can’t be compared to other singers.

Her third CD “It’s Happening” was just released on Zoho Music. Here she’s backed by the ensemble of pianist David Hazeltine, drummer Joe Farnsworth, drummer Nat Reeves, trombonist Steve Davis, trumpeter Ron Horton and tenor saxophonist Jed Levy. Perez tackles standards like “Blame It on My Youth,” “In The Wee Small Hours,” and Jobim’s “Corcovado.”

Perez is taking voice lessons from a variety of coaches including, ironically, two noted pianists Barry Harris and Bertha Hope. This singer Perez is on the move.

In the category of female jazz singers with single-name recognition, Perez is coming on strong. ‘It’s Happenin” (Zoho), her third album, is an unpretentious affair that features her sextet almost as much as it features her.
There are brief, mood-setting arrangements and plenty of inspired instrumental solos, no doubt elicited by the quality of her singing and the quality of the songs, standards such as ‘Blame It on My Youth,’ ‘Corcovado,’ ‘In the Wee Small Hours’ and ‘Detour Ahead.’Perez has a natural way of singing, reminiscent of Anita O’Day. She never strains after mood and feeling. They’re inherent in her musical understanding.

Of course, it helps to have pianist David Hazeltine (good drive, rich block chords) backing her, along with bassist Nat Reeves and drummer Joe Farnsworth. The horn players — trumpeter Ron Horton, trombonist Steve Davis and tenor saxophonist and flutist Jed Levy — sometimes appear en masse on a track, as on the atmospheric introduction to ‘Nature Boy,’ and sometimes singly.

Diana Perez grew up in New York, moved to Los Angeles when she was 17, discovered jazz, spent a decade in Europe (where she performed regularly at the Bimhuis inAmsterdam) and returned home to New York. She’s the kind of singer the band can like as well as the audience.

Perez’s third CD is her first opportunity to record for a U.S. label, in the company of fellow New Yorkers for this engaging session. The rich-toned alto has a touch of vibrato at the end of her phrases in ‘Will You Still Be There,’ a hip vocal version of Herbie Hancock’s song. She is very focused in the breezy samba setting of the bittersweet ‘Blame It on My Youth.’ She masters Annie Ross’ vocalese set to Art Farmer’s ‘Farmers Market,’ with delightful accompaniment by pianist David Hazeltine and flutist Jed Levy, while she also excels in Giacomo Gates’ vocalese rendition of Miles Davis’ ‘Milestones,’ featuring trombonist Steve Davis to good effect. Her moving ‘Detour Ahead’ has an air of hope, while the imaginative scoring of ‘Nature Boy’ keeps it from getting predictable. An excellent date by a jazz vocalist deserving of wider recognition. Ken Dryden

New York native Diana Perez is a remarkable artist blessed with a strong expansive contralto voice that sets her apart from the myriad of female jazz vocalists producing new recordings almost daily. Releasing her third album and first on the ZOHO label, “It’s Happenin’” features a repertoire taken from the Great American Songbook cast in new exciting arrangements and performed with a cadre of luminaries from the top echelon of New York’s vibrant jazz scene.This is one of those rare jazz vocal albums where the vocalist surrounds herself with such an impressive musical support that the excellent instrumentals and solos almost outshine the singer herself. Perez is clearly the leader here but the play from pianist David Hazeltine, reed man Jed Levy and Joe Farnsworth on the drums, is superb. Rounding out the personnel is bassist Nat Reeves, trombonist Steve Davis and trumpeter Ron Horton.

The lady begins the program with a sultry voicing of Herbie Hancock’s “Will You Still Be There” aided by appreciable horn play from Horton. On “Blame It On My Youth” the singer draws inspiration from personal experience and a difficult childhood to sing the lyrics. Hazeltine shines on this one with accompaniment from Levy on a fine flute foray.

I believe the late Antonio Carlos Jobim would be pleased with Perez’s rendition of his immortal classic, “Corcovado” where Perez voices lyrics in Portuguese. Hazeltine provides new arrangements of several tunes that take advantage of the singer’s vocal reach and providing a nice musical marriage with the band’s instrumentals. This is the case on “Milestones,” Eden Ahbez’s oft heard standard, “Nature Boy,” and Juan Tizol’s “Perdido,” made famous by the Ellington orchestra.

No question about this one folks, “It’s Happen’” is where it’s happening if you’re looking for a first-rate jazz vocals recording. Diana Perez delivers an enticing performance using lush vocals in mesmerizing fashion. Equally formidable is the sparkling play from the band that distinguishes themselves with exciting solos and excellent musicianship.

Badda boom-Badda Bing!! What a sensational group…..What a stalwart singer. Jazz singer ‘Perez’ & group take on the American songbook & nail it they do! This band & singer bring color, texture & themes of originality to our senses, & is certainly artistically fertile as well. Adaptability, great solos, & timely/tasteful renditions also help to enhance the combined group’s work. As for Perez’s vocalise, she exhibits a strong sense of bebop in her delivery personified by her storng, flexible, swinging style. Her voice offers us a witty, melodic, & exploratory musical commentary.George W. Carroll
The Musicians’ Ombudsman

Harlem born vocalist Perez offers her talents as a storyteller with this third CD, a collection of well chosen standards and jazz classics that show off fine vocal abilities. Perez possesses a rich full- bodied voice with capable intonation and shading and a gift for phrasing.Her material includes (among other standards) ‘ Detour Ahead”, a song famously featured as an instrumental on Bill Evans ‘Recorded Live At The Village Vanguard album but seldom done with the lyrics. Perez is very much at ease with two vocalese-type songs’ Farmers Market’’ and Milestones’’ (with lyrics by Annie Ross on the former and Giacomo Gates on the later)

Although this cd is a studio recording, there is a feel akin to a live performance. This cd is a tasteful package both vocally and instrumentally and insures future storytelling by the vocalist.

CD Review:

PEREZ/It’s Happening: Probably a pal of Dutch jazz great Saskia Laroo, this Harlem born jazz singer split for LA at 17 where she sung until splitting for Amsterdam for ten years and working her way around the cool jazz scene in town. Now back state side, she rounded up some solid New York cats that can play it old Verve/Blue Note style and a good time is had by all. Fun jazz vocal set with a lot of instrumental stretching out that simply leaves you feeling good.

Diana Perez is the new voice of this bunch, in spite of the fact she has been actively performing as both actor and vocalist for several years. Perez (now the single moniker) has joined forces with Zoho Music and its considerable talent pool to produce the richly entertaining and pleasantly surprising It’s Happenin’.It’s Happenin’ is populated with not-so-standard standards offering a striking comparison to the “standard” fare of many vocal recordings. While this does not make Perez’s effort superior to an assembly of warhorses, it does make it more compelling and interesting. And then there is that voice.

Perez’s voice is a humidly sensual work of art: a perfectly formed alto with a solid bottom, a broad midrange of consistent density, and a confident top. This voice permits Perez to sing whatever she damn well pleases…and to sing it well. The listener need not cue up more than the disc’s two vocalese pieces: the Annie Ross vehicle “Farmer’s Market” and Giacomo Gates adaptation of Miles Davis’ “Milestones” to hear that the “new thing” in jazz vocals has arrived.

Perez’s band is sharp, particularly drummer Joe Farnsworth, who brings a big band sound to her sensible combo. He plays sensitively on the Bill Evans’ piece “Detour Ahead,” adapted by Perez from the classic Live At The Village Vanguard, which also sports a nifty flute solo by Jed Levy.

by Ken Dryden
Perez’s third CD is her first opportunity to record for a U.S. label, in the company of fellow New Yorkers for this engaging session. The rich-toned alto has a touch of vibrato at the end of her phrases in ‘Will You Still Be There,’ a hip vocal version of Herbie Hancock’s song. She is very focused in the breezy samba setting of the bittersweet ‘Blame It on My Youth.’ She masters Annie Ross’ vocalese set to Art Farmer’s ‘Farmers Market,’ with delightful accompaniment by pianist David Hazeltine and flutist Jed Levy, while she also excels in Giacomo Gates’ vocalese rendition of Miles Davis’ ‘Milestones,’ featuring trombonist Steve Davis to good effect. Her moving ‘Detour Ahead’ has an air of hope, while the imaginative scoring of ‘Nature Boy’ keeps it from getting predictable. An excellent date by a jazz vocalist deserving of wider recognition.

Anyone for Perez? Yesterday I heard a new singer for the first time, and I must say I quite likeit. Her name is Perez (just that, no first name), and she’s a busty jazzettewith a darkish voice who has recorded the album “It’s Happenin'” on the Zoholabel. I quite suggest it, since she’s creative but she never strives to soundhipper than she naturally is. Her voice has some pleasant hues of Annie Ross,whom she has clearly listened to a lot (she even includes “Farmer’s Market” inthe CD, and that is enough to gain a first class place in Heaven, as far as I’mconcerned), and the CD also includes lyrics to instrumentals by Anita Wardell(on a Herbie Hancock tune) and Giacomo Gates (on Davis “Milestones”). Before thetraditionalists here start calling an exorcist, I can calm you down by tellingyou that Perez doesn’t scat… and the rest of the album includes some lovelystandards, including “Blame It On My Youth” (with the verse), “Detour Ahead” and”In the Wee Small Hours”. Has anybody heard of her?
Stefanoif you like my recording /…..please write something about my session on the Songbirds Yahoo group.