A Musical Find
ball-and-chain loves jazz vocalists. She has CDs of Dina Washington, Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong and others, and she can't get enough of them. I never really got a taste for that genre, though I realize that people who know music much better than I do love it.

I recently discovered a singer that may have me take a second listen to b&c's collection. At work, I frequently listen to my Yahoo Launch station. It customizes what it plays according to your rating of songs, albums and artists, and supplements that with new releases it's trying to get you interested in.

A singer that the station kept playing finally got my attention. Renee Olstead has a new, self-titled album of many classics in that genre including "Summertime" and "Someone To Watch Over Me". I don't know anything about singing, but she has a rich, beautiful voice, so I found her web site. It turns out she's a bit of a child protege. She's 15 years old. Besides the new album, she's on a TV series. The website plays her new album in its entirety, and I've been listening constantly for a few days. My favorite is "Meet Me, Midnight". I'm probably a maroon for turning my nose up at Ella Fitzgerald for all those years and then liking this neophyte. Take a listen. I'm curious what you think. - served up by Doctor Bean @ 7:26 PM