Diana Krall
From This Moment On
Verve

'From This Moment On', a twelve-track standards release, combines the piano chops and gorgeous, husky voice of the delightful Mrs Elvis Costello with the big band sound of The Clayton/Hamilton Jazz Orchestra.

Sad to say that it doesn't work across all tracks, indeed bordering at times on the annoying. In short, on several tracks where the big band takes centre stage, her voice appears to be utterly overwhelmed by the band. For example, the opener, It Could Happen To You, is great for the first 90 seconds - featuring Krall's smoky, sultry voice matched to the clarinet and double bass. But when the chorus arrives, it's on for young and old, and Krall's voice is under siege by the sheer power of the band. Then, to confuse the listener, track two, Irving Berlin's Isn't This A Lovely Day, sees Krall revert back to the sensual and smoky for six glorious minutes.

The title track sees her snowed under from the get-go, making me wonder what she and co-producer Tommy LiPuma were thinking. Meanwhile, Day In Day Out is a fence-sitter, bordering on making it/not making it, while the xylophone that intros the standard Come Dance With Me suggests that, by track ten, things might have been sorted vocal wise. Thanks to modern technology, the listener has the ability to program or delete certain tracks on the CD and that is a godsend, let me tell you. So out of the twelve tracks, there are about four (mainly the big band stuff) that you could give the flick to, especially if you are a 'Look Of Love' Krall fan. The rest will keep you more than satisfied.

In essence, Krall's forte is that of a jazz pianist/singer, a genre that has rewarded her handsomely and one that she should stick with.

Mark Liebelt