In their debut CD, IN OTHER WORDS, The Arrangements of Elise Bretton, the vocal quartet - ZAZ - is thrilled to be singing twelve of Elise's premier arrangements of jazz and pop standards. This swinging jazz ensemble is made up of David Arthur Bachrach, Maryanne Murray, Lynne Wilson and Mark Wolff.
As an arranger, Elise began work with Sy Oliver and later arranged, but never recorded the selections on this CD, for her vocal group, The Hi Tones. As a singer, Elise has been heard on such landmark recordings as Frankie Avalon's Venus, Ben E. Kings On Broadway, Jackie DeShannon's original versions of the Burt Bacharach classic What the World Needs Now and throughout the 50's and 60's on countless sessions with such orchestras as Xavier Cugat and The Ray Conniff Singers. She was the vocal arranger for the Pulitzer Prize winning 1776 and is a co-writer (with Don Meyer & Sherman Edwards) of the jazz standard, For Heavens Sake, which has been recorded by Billie Holiday, Tony Bennett and many others.
ZAZ creates great vintage jazz with their dynamite band made up of seasoned professionals from New York and Brooklyn: Ed MacEachen (guitar), Joe Barbato (piano/accordion), Tom Hubbard (bass) Scott Neumann and Steve John (drums), and David Bixler (alto sax).
Add all this to great composers from Ellington to Mercer to and Harry Woods, and you've got a CD worth having in your library and playing on the radio...
"Recently I had the pleasure of meeting the vocal group, ZAZ. They have a 1940's sound that recalls The Modernaires, who sang with Glenn Miller. This lost art form, not heard in over fifty years, has come full circle, due to the beautifully crafted arrangements of Elise Bretton. I've heard a lot of talent in my 48 years in music, and I can't quit playing ZAZ on my radio shows."
Danny Stiles "The King of Nostalgia", NYC
WNYC-AM 820 Saturday Evening's 8-10 pm
WNSW-AM 1430 Monday-Friday 10-12 pm
WPAT-AM 930 Sundays 2-4 am)
Read more...