Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Some New Press Items:


With many thanks to the writers and reviewers who have spread a kind word
about my musical endeavors here are a few more press items for the archives...

 

Harrington: Jazz singer Sony Holland back in Bay Area with new CD

By Jim Harrington
San Jose Mercury News
© Copyright 2011, Bay Area News Group



SONY HOLLAND now calls Los Angeles home. But that doesn't mean Bay Area fans should stop feeling possessive about this incredibly talented former San Francisco singer. The Bay Area is where things first started to happen for the smooth-voiced Holland, who originally hails from Minnesota. She spent six years practicing her art here, going from busking for spare change at Pier 39 and Ghirardelli Square to performing at Yoshi's, Jazz at Pearl's and some of the area's other top clubs. She rose through the local ranks, then took her show on the road, gaining fans in such jazz hot spots as New York City and Japan. Her fan base continued to grow as she released three critically acclaimed CDs. Now make that four.Holland's new CD, "Sanssouci," finds the song stylist putting her distinctive stamp on a mix of standards, originals and contemporary songs. The title track, penned by Rufus Wainwright, refers to a summer palace built by King Frederick of Prussia in 1745. That topic sounds a bit dry in print, yet it's anything but in Holland's hands. Holland is coming back to Northern California to support the new CD with two concerts. She'll perform at 8 p.m. Saturday at Kuumbwa Jazz Center, 320 Cedar St., Santa Cruz. Then she'll play at 3 p.m. Sunday at the Rrazz Room at Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason St., San Francisco.



Two short audio clips from KGO Radio's Scott Lettieri:
KGO Clips 1 & 2



A new Sanssouci review from renowned jazz journalist Scott Yanow in the LA Jazz Scene Newspaper:





One of the most talented jazz singers in town, Sony Holland has the potential to sing a wide variety of music and improvise creatively in every idiom. On Sanssoucci, she sings several standards, a few obscurities, and five
excellent songs by her husband guitarist Jerry Holland. Accompanied by Holland, keyboardist Robbie Kondor, bassist David Hughes, drummer Kendall Kay and occasionally the cello of Wolf Sebastian, the singer pays respect to the melodies and lyrics and keeps her renditions concise but definitive. Slower tempos are emphasized with her versions of “What A Difference A Day Made” and “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” (the most rewarding recording of the latter song in  quite a few years) are among the highlights. This continually evolving artist is well worth seeing live too. Sanssoucci is available from www.sonyholland.com.



And this "pick" from Bay Stages Magazine:




1 comment:

  1. Fantastic write ups for a fantastic duo. I love the KGO clip with the two of you just being yourselves. Very cool.

    ReplyDelete