Linn Records Announce New Claire Martin and Richard Rodney Bennett Album

Tracklisting:
• My One And Only • I Was a Little Too Lonely • My Mood Is You • World Weary • When Lights Are Low • Fools Fall In Love • I Got a Right To Sing The Blues • Baby Plays Around • The Very Thought of You • What I Was Warned About • Baby, Don’t You Quit Now • No Love, No Nothing • Not Exactly Paris • Any Place I Hang My Hat Is Home • I Keep Going Back to Joe’s • We’ll Be Together Again •

On the surface it’s an unlikely pairing. You’ve got Claire Martin, the cheeky south London jazz singer with brilliant technique and beautiful voice with Sir Richard Rodney Bennett, the bow-tie wearing gent and one time Pierre Boulez student best known for his film scores (Four Weddings, Murder On the Orient Express). At 69 he is nearly twice her age, and together they make a fun, sassy duo. Friends for fifteen years, the idea for this album was born when Bennett played piano on Martin’s last release, “Secret Love” (a heartfelt reading of My Buddy). However, as well as being justly lauded for his film scores, Bennett has also produced over 200 works for the concert hall (including the LSO, NY Philharmonic and BBC Proms) and is no stranger to jazz having performed with the likes of Annie Ross and Cleo Laine.

Martin is a peerless singer who can swing, scat and phrase with the best and is rightly lauded as the finest jazz singer of her generation. But for those of us who have seen her recently fronting the funky Laurence Cottle Big Band, the Hallé Orchestra or her marvellous quartet this album may be something of a surprise. Just her, Sir Richard Rodney Bennett and a piano, beautifully recorded in New York. But as Martin reveals:

“I always wanted to work with Richard. He sings beautifully and he plays great piano, he has such a beautiful touch and really cool ideas. Plus he knows loads of great quirky songs, not just the old ones – everything from Cole Porter to Bacharach/Costello and where they come from”.

That’s what this album is about, the old fashioned virtue of great songs, beautifully played and sung. In choosing to record them in this way they let the songs breathe, leaving themselves plenty of room to explore the nuance, meaning and heart of some wonderful songs.

Claire Martin and Sir Richard Rodney Bennett launch “When Lights Are Low” (Linn AKD 260) at Pizza on the Park, Knightsbridge, London SW1; 13 September-8 October (not Sundays and Mondays): two shows nightly at 9.15pm and 10.45pm *NB Sir Richard Rodney Bennett will appear solo from 27 Sept-1 Oct.

Forthcoming Live Dates 2005
July 25th – 30th – Claire Martin Quartet, Trinity Theatre, Tunbridge Wells, Kent.
August 1st – with Sir Richard Rodney Bennett, Edinburgh International Jazz Festival, The Hub, Edinburgh.
August 2nd – Harrogate International Festival, Cedar Court Hotel.
August 5th – with Sir Richard Rodney Bennett, Snape Proms, Snape Maltings Concert Hall.
August 10th – with Laurence Cottle Big Band, Jazzland, Swansea.
September 2nd - 3rd – with Dublin RTE Orchestra, National Concert Hall, Dublin.
September 13th-October 8th (not Sundays or Mondays) – with Sir Richard Rodney Bennett, Pizza on the Park, London.
October 15th – with Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Philharmonic Hall, Hope Street, Liverpool.

On another note, why not enhance your CD collection with our classic albums, specially selected by Linn staff to give you a low cost introduction to the best recordings in the Linn catalogue. There are 30 titles to choose from in our Try For A Fiver range with a great selection of albums by Claire Martin “Vocalist of the Year" (BBC Radio 2 & 3 Jazz Awards 2003), , “Hit Me Baby One More Time” finalists Hue and Cry and saxophonist supreme, Tommy Smith.

Jazz albums include Claire Martin’s “Take My Heart” featuring Oasis’s Noel Gallagher guesting on guitar, “A Place In My Heart” by international award winning singer Carol Kidd and “Blue Smith” by Scotland’s leading saxophonist Tommy Smith.

This offer is only available at www.LinnRecords.com until 31st August, while stocks last.

If you have not yet experienced the amazing sound of Linn Super Audio CD, take advantage of this opportunity to try some great albums for a fantastic price. Featuring SACDs in both Stereo and Surround Sound, this is a collection that will broaden your SACD collection or provide a great starting point for new collectors. SACD Classic Albums (Linn AKD 901) features two Multichannel recordings from bestselling vocalist Carol Kidd “Nice Work” and “Debut”, along with Stereo recordings of Claire Martin’s “Take My Heart” featuring Oasis’s Noel Gallagher guesting on guitar and “Stability” by drummer extraordinaire Clark Tracey. With albums by the Perfect Houseplants, Tommy Smith, Gerard Presencer and William Jackson numbering 10 in total for only £45 this is a spectacular introduction to the benefits of Super Audio sound. For more information about Linn SACDs go to www.LinnRecords.com/sacd.

Finally, we are in the process of signing some very interesting new artists and are constantly on the lookout for the freshest talent in jazz. Please forward all demos to Linn Records, Glasgow Road, Waterfoot, Eaglesham, Glasgow, Scotland, G76 0EQ.