Vocalist Veronica Martell Releases The Art of Intimacy

With the release of Art of Intimacy on June 6, 2005, Veronica Martell is finally poised to bring her exquisite vocal stylings to American mainstream audiences - confirming what international audiences have known for years - Martell is “. . . a great voice that instantly catches you and keeps you beside the loud speakers,” as declared by Jyllands-Posten (Denmark’s largest newspaper).

Though she grew up listening to the pop music of the 70’s and 80’s, Martell was influenced by traditional greats like Ella Fitzgerald, Etta James, Sarah Vaughn and Nancy Wilson. Yet, modern singers such as Patti LaBelle, James Taylor and Anita Baker remained a staple of her vocal studies. In turn, her own writing and composition style would grow to embrace a mix of genres that would lead to work with TNN’s Nashville Network, off-Broadway productions, television, radio and movie soundtrack recordings.

For several years, Martell remained a fixture on the New York nightclub scene before releasing her first CD in fall of 1999, Big City Swing. This neo-swing recording led to an international tour to Denmark that included a critically acclaimed performance at the Copenhagen Blues Festival and an appearance on Good Morning Denmark in 2002.

Big City Swing won the adoration of internet audiences as well. Martell was chosen for the special segment, “Women of MP3.com,” which highlighted the careers of successful entrepreneurs in independent music.

Her eagerly awaited second release, Lucky, arrived in 2002 and soon made its way up the charts of worldwide jazz radio with the track, “Romancing the Blues” repeatedly hitting the top 100 countdowns in 2002. After touring extensively in Scandinavia, her 2002 European Tour would include performances at the Tuno Jazz Festival and the world-renowned Copenhagen Jazz Festival in Tivoli Gardens.

In 2003, Veronica’s single, “Too Young for the Blues,” was featured on the compilation album Jazz – In Celebration of Life that included tracks by Tony Bennett, Miles Davis, Sarah Vaughn and Charlie Parker among others. More recently, Martell teamed up with Kevin Mahogany in his chart-topping Big Band (2004) for what the Jazz Times playfully referred to as a “sinfully dusky” duet on “It’s Alright With Me.”

Signing with Apria Records in 2004, Veronica Martell releases The Art of Intimacy, a daringly provocative collection of contemporary songs that includes the singles “Blind” and “Dreams,” a cover of the Fleetwood Mac classic. Fed by the classics and nurtured on jazz, Martell carefully crafted The Art of Intimacy to reflect her own eclectic tastes. “I have always loved Stevie Nicks’ writing and “Dreams” was on one of the first albums I ever bought growing up. It definitely has roots in my past. My good friend Pete Belasco wrote “Love Don’t Pay The Bills,” shared Martell. “Sometimes I Wonder Why” and “Why Do People Fall In Love?” spoke lyrically to the artist, but are also beautifully complimented by the addition of a string quartet.

Wonderfully crafted with adult listeners in mind, The Art of Intimacy is positioned to be the premiere offering by an immensely gifted vocalist on the rise.

“a remarkable vocal talent…with an exquisite four octave range” – All Music Guide