The Great Vocals of Jocelyn Medina
Bruce Von Stiers
Jocelyn Medina has studied opera at Stanford, earned a Bachelor's degree in Music from Berklee College of Music and a Masters in vocal music from Manhattan School of Music. With those credentials it is no wonder that Jocelyn is an oft sought after musician, vocalist, composer and bandleader.
Not only does she perform before audiences, Jocelyn also records. She had a critically acclaimed album called The Journey Begun. Now, this year, Jocelyn has recorded and released a brand new album. This one is called We Are Water.
Jocelyn wrote all of the songs on the album except one where someone else wrote the music. Jocelyn produced the album with Robert Levin.
A six person band backed up Jocelyn's vocals on the album. The members of the band were Rodrigo Ursaia on tenor sax and flute, Aidan Carroll on acoustic and electric bass and Bodek Janka on drums and percussion. Kristjan Randalu played piano on the album. Duties on guitar were shared by Miles Okazaki and Raphael McGregor.
Cosmic is the first song. It has cool, lyrical vocals with music that at times sound a bit Brazilian.
The title track, We Are Water, is the second entry on the album. It is a soft and gentle tune with light bass and piano backing Jocelyn with some flute sneaking in there.
Light and lyrical like a Jobim tune, I couldn't help but smile while listening to the song April 4th . It has some ultra cool flute music.
Then there is the slightly haunting beginning to My First Love Song. That sound then moves into a smooth and easy love song with beautiful vocals.
Natural is a throwback to old school jazz songs with cool vocals and great bass and piano.
Time And Place is a fast paced tune that has a samba styling that is fun to listen to.
Same Mistakes has pretty tough percussion and somewhat haunting, aching vocals.
A slow dance, strong bass styling can be heard in the song Feel Free.
Make Change has a slick, almost pop feel to it. There is some nice piano on the song.
Mellow and lyrical are the vocals in the song Close To Home.
The album closes with a slick, kind of R&B styled tune called Reason.
You may not be familiar with her name but you should be. Jocelyn Medina is a world class jazz vocalist and composer. This album showcases Jocelyn's vocal talents very well. With the varied styles of the songs and the great musicians she got to play on the album, it is sure to be well received by both critic and fan alike.
To learn more about Jocelyn Medina and this new album, We Are Water, visit http://www.jocelynmedina.com
© 2011 Bruce E Von Stiers