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DIANNE REEVES 'KNOWS' BEST: Jazz singer promotes new disc; preps for Playboy Jazz Cruise.
*Fresh off a successful tour of Europe, jazz songbird Dianne Reeves is hardly resting on the laurels of her latest disc, “When You Know.” And though she’s gearing up to take a cruise, she’s hardly taking a vacation.
RadioScope/EUR’s Larita Shelby caught up with the sultry singer who took some time out to talk about her new CD and about joining the roster of jazz greats on the upcoming Playboy Jazz Cruise.
Reeves “When You Know” is described as a collection of love songs “whose perspective ranges from youthful innocence to enlightened maturity.” The disc features Reeve’s renditions of songs such as the Temptations’ “Just My Imagination” and “Lovin’ You” made famous by Minnie Riperton, among others.
“It seems to be well received,” she said of the disc which hit last month. “I’m really enjoying going out and performing and people are really excited about the record. This is just music that I grew up listening to; that I just love. In a lot of ways, this particular CD is like a journey from when I started to where I am now.”
Reeves said that she’s always wanted her music to be “accessible” and agreed that this disc very well has something for every jazz lover. Though she added that she’s never really had to develop a disc based on how commercial or accepted it might be across the board.
“Fortunately, being at Blue Note [Records] they don’t pressure you. They want you to be the artist you are and to have your own voice,” she said. “I’m a storyteller so a lot of my music that you hear on the record and when we perform live there are stories behind them. “I’ve always wanted every song I’ve ever done to mean something because it means something to me, and that makes it more accessible.”
When talking about some of the songs on the disc, Reeves said that even the simplest lyrics said a lot about her story.
“They were very simple and lovely lyrics,” she said referring to tracks such as “Just My Imagination,” “but when they came out to me, that was everything. It’s not a sophisticated lyric, but the feeling was still the same. Now I’m in a place where I sing about ‘your lips are like red and ruby challises’. These lyrics are a little bit different, but the feelings are just the same.”
Putting even more talent on the project, the disc was produced by jazz legend and Reeves’ cousin, George Duke. The two have collaborated on a number of projects and fortunately for them the “you can’t work with family” adage isn’t so true.
“You walk into his door and you’re greeted with the biggest smile,” she fondly recalled. “And that smile has so much weight behind it because he just loves what he does and he just loves working with people. And you feel it.”
With the disc spinning on jazz stations and gaining momentum, Reeves is now preparing to be a part of the fun on the upcoming first-ever Playboy Jazz Cruise in January 2009, though she originally hesitated in joining on.
“I have always resisted cruises because I’ve never felt comfortable with being on a ship, but when it was the Playboy Jazz Cruise – and I knew everyone behind the scenes and when I saw who was going to be doing it – I said, ‘I’m going to do this,’” she said. “And I’m looking forward to it because it’s going to be magical.”
In the meantime, Reeves is making her own magic with the new disc and her jazz festival dates. And Reeves will also be performing at New York City's Carnegie Hall on June 27th with Al Green.
For more on the Dianne Reeves performances and the new disc, check out www.diannereeves.com. For more on the Playboy Jazz Cruise, go to www.playboyjazzcruise.com.
“Keep doing what it is that you love for the love of it,” Reeves encouraged. “That’s the most important thing because the more you love it, the more people will love it."
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