Review: Dream On ~ "Aerosmith enters The Great American Songbook."
C. MICHAEL BAILEY, Senior Contributor - Since 1997
New England jazz polyglot Kathleen Kolman displays efficiency in art with the release of Dream On. The recording serves as both her Masters Degree project at Lesley University in Cambridge and her first commercial release. She joins a rarefied group of female jazz vocalists who call New England home, including Donna Byrne, Kris Adams, Krisanthi Pappas, Carol Akerson and Rebecca Parris. Her deep alto voice is quite reminiscent of Parris, a true standout in jazz vocals.”
Kolman's specialty is Brazilian jazz sung in the original Portuguese. While Dream On contains a good bit of this music, it is the title tune—yes, the Aerosmith hit—that rocks the house. The search for the new popular music jazz songbook has gone to many strange places, but adding Aerosmith to the book breaks new ground. Jazz vocal interpretations of rock songs are fraught with hazard, but Kolman is certainly up to the challenge.
Opting for spare accompaniment, Kolman elects to use only upright bass, percussion, and background vocals on this rock anthem. Her arrangement works not only surprisingly well, but is successful across the board. A descending bass figure opens the song, recalling Peggy Lee's opening to "Fever." Kolman's voice, husky and durable draws out Steven Tyler's lyrics, presenting them in a way that both makes sense of the lyrics and music. The difficult chorus and coda are handled with bright background vocals that frame Kolman's singing. Something that could have gone horrible wrong emerges triumphant and evolutionary. Aerosmith enters The Great American Songbook.
Dream On: Self Produced: Featuring Kathleen Kolman: vocals; Keala Kaumeheiwa: bass; Bertram Lehmann: percussion
A Fruitful Jazz Career For Kathleen
Dave Nathan, All Music Guide
It's not likely that Butte, MT, will ever be known as a Mecca for jazz and blues. But the Butte household where Kathleen Kolman grew up was a musical oasis as her father was a jazz instrumentalist on drums, tenor sax, and clarinet. To add icing on the cake, her mother was a vocalist.
After studying music theory, Kolman did the rock & roll scene, performed in musical theater productions, and went on U.S.O. tours to the Orient. But her interest in jazz didn't peak until she moved to the New England area.
Workshops by premiere jazz vocalists Sheila Jordan, Jay Clayton, and Lisa Thorson and studies with Brazilian stylist Camila Benson became the catalyst for Kolman to move forward as a jazz performer.
Getting her first important jazz gig in 1992 in New Hampshire, she has since headlined jazz festivals in Butte and in Portsmouth, NH, as well as serving as the artist-in-residence at Plymouth State College.
In June of 2000, she recorded the soundtrack for a show based on the life of pioneer woman airplane pilot Amelia Earhart.
Her first album, The Dreamer, was released in 1999 for the Walkin' Foot Productions label and is built around a playlist of mostly second tier standards; that is, songs that while familiar and pleasant to hear, are not accorded all that prominent a place in the Great American Songbook.
With her deep and husky blues-tinged voice, excellent range, and impeccable phrasing, she brings these tunes to life with panache and style. Citing Ella Fitzgerald, Shirley Horn, and Carmen McRae as influencing her approach to jazz singing, Kolman is making a mark for herself in the very competitive New England jazz vocal scene by performing at jazz venues throughout the area.
All of this activity portends a fruitful jazz career for Kathleen Kolman.
Dream On Kathleen Kolman Primary Artist, Producer, Arranger, Vocals, Executive Producer, Composer
Kathleen Kolman Bio ~ Review
by Dave Nathan ~ All Music Guide
New England is now home for many excellent vocalists on the distaff side like Donna Byrne, Kris Adams, Krisanthi Pappas, Carol Akerson and Rebecca Parris, among others. With her inaugural album, The Dreamer, Kathleen Kolman has earned a spot on that roster.
The album's play list avoids the comfortable standard classic material of Cole Porter, the Gershwin Brothers, Johnny Mercer and JimmyVan Heusen. Instead her musical agenda is comprised of tunes which haven't received the same recording attention as the more famous entries in the Great American Songbook, but which nonetheless attract performers known for their good taste.
Kolman favors songs that lean toward the melancholy which suit her full, deep voice as on the doleful "Where Do You Start." Her rendition of "Detour Ahead" ranks up there with recordings by Billie Holiday, Terri Thornton and Jeri Southern. Room has been made on this track for a short but tasteful drum solo by Les Harris, Jr.
The album's opener "Let's Get Lost" is done medium tempo and showcases Mark Shilansky's spare, minimalist but tuneful piano.
Kolman's comfort with Latin rhythms is apparent as she whisks through Jobim's "The Dreamer" and the Menescal/Boscoli - penned "Little Boat." On the first, Charlie Jennison's Herbie Mann-like flute gets center stage attention and, on the second, his smooth, in tune soprano saxophone.
The passion Kathleen's voice makes "As Long as He Needs Me" a truly emotional experience as Jennison's stirring tenor sax optimizes Kolman's dramatic expression, making this track one of the highlights of the album.
Sensual anticipation is the mood on "Fever" with Jennison's tenor again helping to sustain the mood.
Up tempo material is not entirely ignored as Kolman swings on "You Hit the Spot," a ditty written by Mack Gordon and Harry Revel for the 1936 film Collegiate.
Kolman chose excellent area musicians to accompany her to the studio to do this album who share credit for its success.
~ Mark Shilansky's piano is sympathetic with and supportive of Kolman throughout.
~ Flautist and sax man Charlie Jennison's superior solo work has already been mentioned.
~ John Lockwood is a bass player of choice in the New England area. His virtuosity is put on display on the album's coda, "Triste." Lockwood, along with
— Les Harris' drums give real meaning to the old rubric that "if you get the rhythm section right, playing the song is easy".
The Dreamer is a fine out of the box effort by Kathleen Kolman and is recommended.
~ Dave Nathan, All Music Guide
Dreamer Kathleen Kolman Primary Artist, Producer, Arranger, Vocals, Executive Producer, Composer
“She has it! She can swing, bop, groove and melt!” - - Written by Chuck Vecoli
This CD, Dream On, by New Hampshire-based Kathleen Kolman, was one of those incredible surprises that one stumbles on every now and then. Until you listen, one cannot appreciate the rich, deep tonality of Kolman's voice. Not only am I surprised at the beauty of this unique voice, I am intrigued at the application of this voice to the popular Latin and original tunes.
"Dream On," the title track, is in fact, that Aerosmith classic by Steven Tyler. In Kolman's hands, this is a soulful and passionate, bluesy ballad. Kolman's voice gives this tune a whole new life. While that track is entertaining, it pales in comparison to any track in which Kolman is singing in the Portuguese of Brazilian jazz. Then, I cannot even describe how natural this voice is to listen to.
Melting mocha ice cream with fudge sauce, that is what comes to mind when I listen to Kolman deliver these wonderful tracks. One cut after another I was further convinced that Kolman had transcended genetic and cultural boundaries and was, in fact, saturated with that Latin jazz gene that few others have truly possessed.
She has it! She can swing, bop, groove and melt! The extensive list of musicians backing up Kolman on this CD provide a solid canvas for her to paint a rich picture of a song. Kolman is a solid and sultry songstress and is convincing in all the formats shown on Dream On.
* Artist / Group Name: Kathleen Kolman
* CD Title: Dream On
* Genre: Jazz Vocals
* Year Released: 2011
* Record Label: Walkin' Foot Productions
* Rating: Four Stars
A Vocalist Seemingly With A Deep Commitment To Her Repertoire,
Grego Applegate:
Singers? Sometimes many are chosen; few are called. The jazz world teams with new singers, hopeful, some very talented, some not as talented. Kathleen Kolman belongs to the first category. Her new album Dream On (Walkin' Foot) shows that. This album was her final project for her Masters in Music Education. That's interesting, but the music speaks for itself, as does her vocal style.
The album is a mix of standards, Brazilian classic bossa-sambas, an original and a version of Aerosmith's "Dream On." My youthful musical memories include a time when the jazz-rock interface was just beginning to come into being. Jazz vocalists--and even more so the middle-of-the-road offshoots of jazz vocalists--began trying to bring the rock-pop music of the day into their repertoire. Take even the best. Ella Fitzgerald was a master, of course, but she perhaps was not all that comfortable taking on a Beatles song. Others of lesser talent tried as well but there was a chasm between the vocal styles at that point. Generations came up who had been raised in a world where rock was ever-present. So we come to today and the idea of a singer like Ms. Kolman doing the Aerosmith perennial is not such a leap anymore. And she does a convincing job of it.
And it's not just that she comes out of a different world. She gets interesting arrangements going and sings in convincing ways no matter what kind of song she tackles. Things like Ivan Lin's samba "Somos Todos Iguais Nesta Noite" are perhaps her most convincing numbers. They drive with the lovely lilt that Ms. Kolman handles perfectly. But she has the extended phrasing nuances, the flexible voice color and the pitch control to hold her own on even something as weathered and storm-tossed as "The More I See You." Her original "Until the Very End" is memorable as well.
It's an album with real charm, nice arrangements and a vocalist seemingly with a deep commitment to her repertoire. Kathleen Kolman brings her effective interpretive talents to realize words and music in creative ways, ways that ring true.
I hope we hear more from her soon! - Gapplegate Guitar and Bass Blog
News Press NOW ~ Review by Alonso Weston: Kathleen Kolman is an exciting new vocalist and multi-instrumentalist. Her new CD "Dream On' is an exploration of Portuguese music filtered through the fabric of American jazz. The 11 songs on the CD are a collection of little heard songs from the Brazilian and American songbooks with a few originals.