GRAMMY® AWARDS
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION
BEST JAZZ VOCAL ALBUM: ACROBATS
JO LAWRY, featuring LINDA MAY HAN OH & ALLISON MILLER
Acrobats is an album that is as audacious as it is thoughtful. Exploring territory rarely traversed by vocalists, Jo Lawry takes on the trio format - voice, bass and drums - with daring, skill and ingenuity. Joined by bass titan (and GRAMMY® winner) Linda May Han Oh, along with the dynamic Allison Miller on drums, this album is a groundbreaking tour-de-force. With works ranging from Lennie Tristano’s “317 East 32nd St” to Australian pop icon John Farnham’s “You’re The Voice,” the three musicians delightfully dance through the music, with a sense of refreshing playfulness that belies the prowess on display.
“One could imagine Sonny Rollins playing many of these phrases and ideas.
**** 1/2”
“The thrill we experience watching acrobats in flight is what it feels like listening to Jo Lawry’s new album Acrobats. Featuring voice, bass, and drums, this record is a jazz joy ride. There are elements of bravery and daring in this music, yet the musicians are obviously highly skilled acrobats who know exactly what they are doing. Using the format of instrumental trio recordings sans piano or guitar (Joe Henderson or Sonny Rollins come to mind), Jo’s seamless pure voice explores the timbres one night hear within a horn section: sax, trombone and clarinet. From the first notes we know we are in the presence of three masters, Jo sizzling with precision in her glorious scat singing and sculpting each lyric expertly while bassist Linda May Han Oh and drummer Allison Miller gleefully explore wide-ranging dynamics punctuated by fiery burst and explosive colors. It’s such a pleasure to hear the trio dive into familiar standards as well as less familiar pieces, such as “317 E 32nd St.” by Lennie Tristano. A voice/drums duet, “You’re the Top” is an espresso tempo proclamation while “Deed I Do” is a funky groove party. “Traveling Light” and “Acrobats” are also captivating gems. I am completely smitten.” 5 stars
- Karin Plato (Absolute Sound)
“On Acrobats, Lawry lays claim to being a sterling jazz singer in the purest sense. Eschewing a chording instrument and challenging herself by recruiting accompaniment from bassist Linda May Han Oh and drummer Allison Miller, Lawry takes on ten standards, prancing above the circus floor with no net in sight… This is a “jazz” recording in every sense, not a simulacrum of what “jazz singing” used to sound like or jazz-inflected pop material. It contains more than a little daring—such as the super-hip arrangement of two Loesser tunes (“My Time of Day / I’ve Never Been in Love Before”)—but Lawry’s winning sound keeps everything glowing.”
- Will Layman (PopMatters)
“This new album from Australian-born, NYC-based vocalist Jo Lawry is a fearless, freewheeling delight.””