Eva George - An Afternoon with Ella [CD]

On Eva's latest recording, An Afternoon with Ella, she is backed by legendary players including drummer Chester Thompson (Weather Report, Phil Collins), bassist David Hungate (Toto) and Catherine Marx (Reba) on piano. These stellar musicians bring eloquent life and beauty to Eva's second full-length studio album. This story of romance is parlayed into songs that look at a lifetime of love, while raising a family, through a nostalgic dialogue. Ella was inspired by the golden anniversary celebration of Eva's parents. With a graceful view of days gone by, she weaves together a classic vocal jazz album. Produced with longtime collaborator, Rob Galbraith (Ronnie Milsap), the team develops the story through classics from the American Songbook, adding in self-penned pieces with an instantly timeless feel to tell the personalized tale of her parent's lives together. Rob states, "It seems Eva has found her niche with these standards plus the ones she wrote; and, her originals more than hold their own even in the presence of such company. Wonderful album to work on with her and the players. A real labor of love. I think you'll enjoy An Afternoon with Ella." Eva adds, "It was such a beautiful challenge to stay true to the classic vocal jazz/Big Band era, while speaking of my parent's journey. I have a deep love for this genre because of them, and I wanted to voice their story from an insider's point of view. To do that I asked each of them about the music in their dating period, how they found the right person and how they raised a family on a shoestring budget. That's when I knew I had to put pencil to paper. I truly enjoyed creating this vision of enduring love. I hope others can see their own romance in these writings." The album includes a smoky jazz homage to their home state of New York, a tale of daydreaming for a man to love, a story or two of living through the lean years and a fresh look at their favorite anniversary song by Billy Joel - with a new vision of the melody. Together, they blend seamlessly to create a timeless tale of love.