The New(er) Wave of Jazz Vocalists

If all you know of jazz vocalists include Frank Sinatra, Chet Baker, & Ella Fitzgerald (all of whom, by the way, are wonderful musicians and have changed the face of jazz forever), here are some of the more recent jazz vocalists you may not be familiar with.  Jazz vocals are still alive and well, and offer more than recordings of "Fly Me to the Moon" being played at your local wedding reception.

1) Esperanza Spalding

You may recognize her from this year's Grammy Awards; she was the one who won Best New Artist and sent Bieber fans home in fits of rage, angry enough to post comments on various internet sites (gasp).  Probably one of my favorite jazz vocalists, this piece above is a little more on the pop side of her stuff.  I got to see her perform live in a clinic back in high school, and if you think her voice makes you melt in a recording, imagine it live and in person.  She is currently teaching bass at Berkeley School of Music, one of the top music schools in the nation.  The more recent her stuff, the more out daring, adventurous, and stretching the music becomes.

2) Kurt Elling

I'm not too familiar with his stuff, but here's another guy who I've had the pleasure of seeing live in St. Louis.  Extremely talented musician, and a superb performer all around.  He draws you in with his stage presence and really tells the story of each piece he sings.  And I'm not just spewing BS; I got a chance to watch a masterclass of his and he will tell you that this is what he constantly strives for in each piece he performs.

3) Erin Bode

Okay, so I'm biased with this one because she is a star in St. Louis (my hometown), but I think she represents the direction jazz vocals are heading.  She doesn't try to sound super refined or dignified in her style; it's much more straight-ahead and almost more rock-influenced.  Fellas, she's married already, so don't get your hopes up.  But I can't stop you from dreaming, I suppose.

4) Cyrille Aimee

I just found her via facebook a couple weeks ago, but I really like what I have heard so far.  She likes to mix in a fair amount of vocal percussion on top of singing.  A fresh approach to jazz, overall, in my humble opinion.  I haven't checked her out too much, so I guess I can't make a final verdict on her quite yet.