You hear it right away: this is jazz from the UK. You can’t get more BBC Radio 1 than this. The mood is good, the club has been renovated, there’s no enlightenment to be expected here. But these covers are certainly not meant for that. Rather, Amanda Whiting’s graceful harp jazz aims for that feel-good spot. This jazz club is played above the ground, with a lift leading up to it. There are cocktails, too. Hubbard, Astor Piazzolla, Ellington, and Kylie Minogue are covered ad infinitum. But the blend, which is interesting on paper, just doesn’t develop any real atmosphere. The harp is too dominant, the style too constant, the five songs have more or less one vibe. You can probably have a good time listening to them. You listen to the 10inch in one go, you hear the close affinity to Matthew Halsall and the Gondwana Orchestra and in the end you will reach for the many, much better records that come from this milieu. »Little Sunflower« is nice. But it lacks depth; it lacks the breaks you would get hung up on. You float out just like that. It was an okay evening. Some culture. And then you call an Uber.
Amanda Whiting
The Liminality Of Her
First Word