Vocalist, Recording Artist and Educator
LONG AS YOU'RE LIVING
Tritone Records 2024
Songs:
1. LONG AS YOU’RE LIVING 4:51
2. THROW IT AWAY 5:57
3. WHEN I LOOK IN YOUR EYES 3:54
4. NEW MORNING BLUES 4:07
5. LONELY WOMAN 5:42
6. ISOTOPE 3:49
7. A TIMELESS PLACE (THE PEACOCKS) 5:39
8. JITTERBUG WALTZ 6:36
9. CLOSE YOUR EYES 5:16
10. ASK ME NOW 4:48
11. BYE BYE BLACKBIRD 6:28
12. HAPERCHANCE/DRIFTING DREAMING (GYMNOPEDIE 1) 8:15
Musicians:
Lisa Rich - vocals
Marc Copland - piano
Drew Gress - bass
Dave Ballou - trumpet
Produced by Lisa Rich, Jay Clayton, Bob Dawson
Engineered by Bob Dawson
RECORDED AT BIAS STUDIOS, SPRINGFIELD, VIRGINIA ON OCTOBER 12-13, 2022
Mixed by Bob Dawson
Mastered by Mike Monseur
"The release of Lisa Rich’s “Long As You’re Living” can be thought of as the comeback of the year. The singer’s first new recording since ill health forced her to stop performing in 1991, this rather remarkable album finds Lisa Rich not only in prime form but enthusiastically singing with adventure, daring, swing, and a deep understanding of the lyrics that she interprets."
- Scott Yanow
“An exquisite and exciting, surprise-filled new collection … the singer’s eclectic set finds her in giddy, happy-to-be-alive mode from the start, infusing the cheery, life affirming title track with her wild and witty phrasing and whimsical, multi-octave scatting. This album will make every jazz fan grateful that Lisa’s still living and thriving – and will hopefully inspire her to keep the comeback going for years to come.”
- Jonathan Widran
“Lisa Rich is better than just a “jazz stylist.” She is a true artist who gets deeply under the skin of the music she sings… she is a towering figure in jazz and such a great artist that she puts herself on a par with the great Sheila Jordan. She is HIP. You simply have to hear this record to believe it!
—Lynne Rene Bailey, The Art Music Lounge
“An adventurous and eminently hip vocalist… this stirring release finds a radiant Rich scatting with uncanny abandon on Clayton's "New Morning Blues" and Joe Henderson's "Isotope," delivering Abbey Lincoln's anthemic "Throw It Away" with an understated power and glory, and reinventing Fats Waller's "Jitterbug Waltz" and the standard "Bye Bye Blackbird" with a playful kind of phrasing and scatting prowess inherited from elders like Clayton, Sheila Jordan and Annie Ross. But perhaps her most compelling performances here come on dramatic interpretations of Horace Silver's "Lonely Woman," Jimmy Rowles' "The Peacock's" and Thelonious Monk's "Ask Me Now," all showcasing her gift for patient storytelling.”
- Bill Milkowski
“Let me tell y'all about Lisa Rich. She's an awesome jazz singer, and she was my voice teacher when I was in my early 20's. She gave to me a gift that has kept on giving ever since. All of her students started lessons looking in the mirror and vocalizing on these words, "I love myself and accept myself exactly the way that I am." At the end of the phrase we were to tag it with a kiss to ourselves or a fist pump and a shout of "Yeah!" It's not that we were God's gift to music (far from it), but it was a powerful affirmation that we can only start from where we actually are - and that begins with acceptance. Thank you, Lisa. I'm so glad you are still at it.“
—Gaynelle Gosselin, Alexander Technique Teacher
"Having Lisa Rich sing the words and music is the best reward a songwriter can get for his work. In the loving care she gives a song, everything is there; flawless intonation, sensitivity, respect, beautiful phrasing, and understanding of the song she is performing. Add to that a rich originality and sense which enables her to often improve upon what the composer produced."
—Loonis McGlohon
Pianist, Composer, Lyricist, Producer, Audiophile Recording Artist