What a fantastic little treasure I found the other day when I got to hear Amy Shook and Felicia Carter live at the Westminster Presbyterian Jazz Night! Somehow this CD wound up in my CD player, and I was soon groovin’ to their title track, “Nothin’ To Do.” Love Felicia Carter’s voice, silky smooth with a penchant for Portuguese, and her songs have a bluesy/jazzy/new orleans feel to them. I really like the swamp groove with “Nothing to Do” and “Broken Teeth Blues.” Amy Shook’s bass on the Broken Teeth Blues (an original) is groovin’. I had never heard “St. Vitus Dance” before, but am really hooked after hearing Amy Shook’s trio on that tune. Felicia Carter sings her songs with the attention to detail that I crave in the jazz singer’s performance style – she’s not afraid to lay back the tempo, or even to argue with the rhythm section (in a playful way, mind you), to create color with tone or articulation, and to let her soul shine. I’m really enjoying my own personal copy of “Nothing to Do.” You can take a sneak preview on Amy Shook’s website, http://amyshook.com or Felicia Carter’s website, http://feliciacarter.com if you want. Good stuff.
