Jane Monheit: In the Sun (Silverline)

Jane Monheit refines her presentation with each succeeding album, and
this one definitely displays her talent to maximum effect. Once again,
she’s surrounded herself with crack musicians the like of Ron Carter
and Kenny Washington; several of the songs include an orchestra
arranged and conducted by the always excellent Alan Broadbent. She’s
come a long way in carving out her own niche, and in an ocean of
contenders, she may be posturing herself to make a stab at the crown.

She’s really beginning to effectively establish her own identity as a
singer – whereas on previous records, her dalliances with classic
standards and show tunes seemed relatively forced, here she comes very
close to making tunes like Just Squeeze Me and It Never Entered My Mind
her own. Her version of Cheek to Cheek would make even Ella Fitzgerald
smile, and the excellent accompaniment by stellar sidemen makes this
tune really swing. Everything here really seems to work well – the
entire set is truly enjoyable.

Though the surround mix is listed as 5.1, the mix here is extremely
variable in content, and changes from tune to tune. There is no
subwoofer content present, and some songs are 5.0 mixes, with others
being 4.0. The sound is quite good, but a little consistency in the mix
would be nice, as well as a little truth in packaging. The 5.0 mixes
have a much more focused vocal content than the 4.0 tunes. And I didn’t
fork over a grand for my sub to sit idly due to some big-shot
surround-mixer’s neglect. There’s no video content to speak of,
although you can access lyrics and photo montages via the DVD layer. At
least the DVD side offers a choice of 5.1 or stereo hi-res programs.
Recommended, despite a few warts.

Tracks: Just Squeeze Me; Chega De Saudade (No More Blues); Once I
Walked in the Sun; Some Other Time; Cheek to Cheek; Tea for Two; Love
Has No Pride; Comecar De Novo; It Never Entered My Mind; Haunted Heart;
Since You’ve Asked.

— Tom Gibbs