CD: Jane Monheit - Surrender

Intelligent, well thought out and flawlessly executed are terms that rarely come to mind when listening to your average CD. Long gone are the days where singers were artists who put together records of material carefully tailored to their voices and sensibilities, creating albums that worked as a collective whole rather than as a collection of songs. These days it all seems to be about getting it out as quickly as possible to capitalise on a reality TV show appearance/new found fame/good sales of the last album/trip to rehab or sex tape and as a result artistic sensibilities have fallen by the wayside.

Jane Monheit’s latest album, Surrender is not like that. This is the sixth album from the 29-year-old jazz singer and her experience shows in her approach and delivery of the material. Her cool, jazz tinged voice has been compared to Ella Fitzgerald but sounds much more like Linda Eder. Whatever, Monheit displays a depth and range on Surrender that hasn’t been as obvious on her previous albums. Like a fine wine, jazz singers seem to get better with age and Surrender is arguably Monheit’s best to date and is the disc that should lift her from the niche she is currently in to the same level as Norah Jones and company.

With a Latin flavour and a good selection of songs (many written specifically for her) that show off her talent as a singer and performer, Surrender is a perfect vehicle for Monheit. By including new material alongside classics (Moon River) Monheit is able to grow as an artist without alienating her fan base. In fact, it shows something like respect for her fans that she is asking them to grow with her instead of just dumping a whole bunch of new stuff on them.

From sultry jazz to plaintive Broadway, Surrender is a CD you will return to again and again.

Surrender by Jane Monheit is out now through Universal.