Artist: Alyson Green

Date of Release: 01/01/2005

Catalogue no: SEC 155

Label: S and G Records

Price: £12

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Track Listing

Alyson Green's debut album, Secret, is a collection of 12 carefully chosen songs - all given a fresh, exciting edge. These include lesser-known tunes such as Where I Belong (by Lawrence Hopgood and Chicago jazz singer Kurt Elling) and Love Vibrations (by Horace Silver), in addition to a number of well-known standards like Bacharach and David’s A House is Not A Home and Cole Porter’s What Is This Thing Called Love. The album’s title track is a reworking of contemporary pop band Maroon 5's Secret. Together Alyson and Producer/Arranger Mark Edwards felt inspired to do something different from the original and gave it a more ethereal feel. The end result features some great guitar breaks from Jim Mullen and a wonderfully moody sax solo from Ben Castle. This debut album sees Alyson collaborate with some of the UK's finest jazz musicians, including the (above mentioned) world-class guitarist Jim Mullen and in-demand saxophonist Ben Castle (as heard on Jamie Cullum's recent album). As Claire Martin says: All the songs have been given polished production, always supporting Alyson’s vocal style. A really impressive debut.

Reviews

01/01/2005 Claire Martin

Alyson loves to tell a story - you can hear that she is 'inside' the lyric and loving the songs. Her choice of musicians is spot on and totally right to compliment her. The world-class Jim Mullen shines on all his featured tracks, especially on the standard "Comes Love".

Arrangements by Mark Edwards are fresh and exciting and his playing superlative on every track. Ben Castle's smoky tenor adds a great dimension especially on the title track 'Secret' and he really burns on "What is this thing called love".

All the songs have been given polished production, always supporting Alyson's vocal style. Her singing is from the heart, delicate, real, and passionate. A really impressive debut!!"
(Claire Martin has repeatedly been voted Best Jazz singer at the British Jazz Awards and presents BBC Radio 3's "Jazz Line Up".)

01/01/2005 Clive Davies jazz critic of the Times/Sunday Times

'Alyson is a truly accomplished singer with a repertoire rich in character. It's not often a singer covers a Kurt Elling number and it's also a while since I’ve heard such a lively version of 'Show me'. The arrangements are distinctive too. They are not just going through the motions as happens on all too many albums.'