CD REVIEW - 'Love Letters'
Jazz Dimensions (Germany) - Carina Prange
March 18, 2001
"The Australian singer and piano player Janet Seidel and her band together with William Galison created a perfect, smooth masterpiece with 'Love Letters'.
For lovers of passionate music Janet Seidel's latest piece of work is wonderfully suited - nearly disturbing how perfect the whole thing sounds!"
CD REVIEW - 'Love Letters'
Phillip Sametz - Australian Musicologist from ABC Fine Music magazine
"The chemistry is palpable with Seidel's melodic performances finding a fine foil in Galison's free wheeling approach"
"...a sheen of quiet sophistication is everywhere apparent."
CD REVIEW - 'Love Letters'
'All About Jazz' Website - Dave Nathan
With her clear, cool voice, Janet Seidel successfully combines the fluencies of such singers as Chris Connor, Blossom Dearie, Peggy Lee and Doris Day into a style which focuses on delivering the story told by the lyrics rather than making her vocal faculties the message.
On the lighter side, Seidel takes on a girlish tone (which she does very well) with another Hoagy Carmichael gem, 'Rockin' Chair.
Galison also shows he can sing as he joins Seidel on a tender duet of 'Every Time We Say Goodbye.
Seidel has earned admission into that select cadre of singers who accompany themselves at piano like Sarah Vaughan, Jeri Southern, Shirley Horn and Nina Simone.
Love Letters is another fine production by Janet Seidel with lots of help from her friends and is highly recommended. __
CD REVIEW - 'Love Letters' (The Canberra Times 11 December 2000)
"Seidel's voice and piano playing and Galison_s harmonicas rate highly among those smooth combinations that seem so natural" Michael Foster
CD REVIEW - 'Love Letters'
Jazz Dimensions (Germany)
Translated by Dieter Vogt
When two people get together who musically harmonize wonderfully, with a little luck the result is like this CD.
The Australian singer and piano player Janet Seidel and her band together with William Galison created a perfect, smooth masterpiece with Janet Seidel - "Love Letters"
The chosen pieces swing, the mouth-organ, which sometimes takes over the melody, produces the wanted 'cuddle-up factor' - the rounded warm voice of Janet Seidel does the rest.
'In a sentimental mood' or 'It ain't necessarily so' appear in a new, well balanced light. And she can sing - with calmness and precision, which these days is nearly unheard of.
However: whoever doesn't like 'Smooth-Jazz' or music after a hard day's work should stay away from it. But for lovers of passionate music Janet Seidel's latest piece of work is wonderfully suited - nearly disturbing how perfect the whole thing sounds!
Hopefully, the passionate Australian singer whose brother plays the bass in her band, finds new fans in Germany.
Review of Live Concert from Courier Mail newspaper:
Simple Messages _by Neville Meyers
_Reviewing Janet Seidel & William Galison at Brisbane Jazz Club
_Sydney singer Janet Seidel and New York harmonica player William Galison have been delivering a simple message to Queensland jazz audiences: two distinctive voices can ignite and fire each other. _Seidel and Galison have been touring South-East Queensland, performing for the Noosa Jazz Action Society, the Toowoomba Jazz Club and the Brisbane Jazz Club to launch their CD (Love Letters, La Brava Records). _Their tour culminated with their final Queensland performance on Monday night for the Gold Coast Jazz Action Society. _The swinging duo had the added advantage of tight and expert backing from Seidel's regular working band (bassist brother David Seidel, guitarist Chuck Morgan and drummer Adam Pache) for Sunday's performance at the Brisbane Jazz Club. _Seidel now has eight CDs, several prestigious ARIA endorsements and years of paying her dues behind her. Galison has recording credits with Peggy Lee, Sting, Les Paul and Astrid Gilberto. _He also records his own CDs on Verve (including Overjoyed, voted No. 6 in the US contemporary jazz charts), and regularly gigs around New York as a jazz and session player. _About her own success, which will soon include a lucrative tour of Japan, and widening exposure to her growing US audiences, Seidel has an easy explanation: "I gave up on Elton John, found the best material I could from the great American songbook, and learned one very important thing - there is still a place in the musical world for a melody singer," she said. _"That's where my present and future directions will lie: to sing simply, respect the melody and continue to improve the way I play the chords and harmonies." _Always ready to experiment, Seidel was keen to give Galison equal billing on her new CD as well as on-stage. _"I've always sung and played with horn players, yet I discovered that the harmonica touches people in places that other instruments don't," she said. The professionalism of both performers rarely flagged in their three generous sets. _Seidel's lyrical understatement consistently shone, beginning with her opening number (a loping, languid, medium-paced And the angels sing). It was also carried through on ballads as well as up-tempo numbers, as she accompanied herself on piano. _Galison, alternating with both diatonic and chromatic harmonicas, expertly showcased the instrument's rich timbre behind Seidel on several ballads and delivered on the instrument's lusty capacity to swing (Lucky's wedding and Some blues). _They capped their performance to a standing ovation, delivering on their salute to trumpeter Chet Baker (Every time we say goodbye), offering Them there eyes as an encore.
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