SARAH McKENZIE - Paris in the Rain (2017) FLAC (tracks), lossless

When Sarah McKenzie released her debut album Don’t Tempt Me in 2011, she 

showed talent and promise. Five years later, she has delivered on that 

promise and excelled in her musical craft.  Paris in the Rain, her second 

outing on the Impulse Jazz Label sees her embarking on adventurous new 

harmonic territory and expanding her skills as a pianist, singer and songwriter.

To me, the idea of Paris always holds connotations of romanticism and 

history, and here Sarah also takes this approach. She crafts her own tunes – 

set alongside timeless classics of the jazz repertoire, made famous by the 

great singers of the day – and marks her own approach to them. All at once 

they are stepping back in time, yet so modern. Sarah demonstrates why these 

songs and their associations are indeed timeless.

The album opens with the iconic Tea for Two. The trumpet solo with mute adds 

a nice tone colour to the mix. Sarah’s zesty and up-tempo rendition sets up 

the groove with the band, over which her vocals dart and glide. There are 

plenty of great solo moments on this track.

Following this strong opener, the next track is Sarah’s own Paris in the Rain. T

he lyric: “I’d trade a summer day again and again, just for one kiss and 

Paris in the rain” is genius, and harks back to the great masters who 

penned many of the lyrics to what are now iconic jazz standards. This song 

shows Sarah’s knack for songwriting and her arrangement weaves splashes of 

colour in and out of the vocal line.

The optimistic and fun Onwards and Upwards, penned by Sarah, has the feel 

of a 1950s television show theme. It’s witty, clever and has one of the 

catchiest melodies I’ve ever heard. Her solo on this track is superb. It’s 

got hints of Nat King Cole, in that she repeats a fragment of an idea for 

a period of time before moving to the next. Within this, Sarah articulates 

each note – demonstrating she can make the piano sing with this kind of 

phrasing and articulation. The addition of flute and vibraphone also gives 

it a Henry Mancini-flavour, and you can hear the optimism in this tune.

Sarah approaches When In Rome with a samba feel. She sets up this tune with 

a fresh take in the form of an ostinato (which returns throughout the track). 

In the bridge, she launches into a hard swing and pulls the phrase before 

hitting the climax of the tune on a pedal point. This track approaches this 

tune much in the way that Blossom Dearie once did, particularly in the 

final chorus. The phrasing swings hard. Each note gets a slight accent as 

it descends through the melodic line, and ends with a lush chord that 

drives the momentum forward. Similarly, I’m Old Fashioned is another ironic 

standard that gets a fresh outing with inventive musical ideas, while 

still retaining the feeling and sense of the song itself. 

On the more melancholy side of the album are Little Girl Blue and Triste. 

These moody and introspective tracks offer Sarah the chance to explore more 

emotional content, which she delivers with stunning conviction. What is 

remarkable about these tunes in the hands of Sarah is that they both offer 

optimism in their final moments.

The closing statement is an instrumental Road Chops. Not overtly complex, 

it is a series of chord changes that allows the musicians to shine in 

extended solos. What is effective about using this at the end is that it 

almost acts like an encore to the rest of the album and cements the feeling 

that you are at a live gig; there’s excitement and energy all around and 

being jazz, anything could happen.

Sarah has captured that sound world of the 1950s, made famous by 

Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Ella Fitzgerald, Nat King Cole and others. 

But in Sarah’s hands, it sounds fresh, modern and hip as ever. This album 

speaks of the nostalgic and romanticised idea of Paris in the Rain, but is 

never cheesy. This combination of jazz standards and her original songs 

shows Sarah at her finest. There’s a great sense of ensemble playing and 

the band is cohesive and energetic at all times. Sarah is an artist who 

knows exactly where she comes from, where she is, and where she is going. by Samuel Cottell (cutcommonmag.com):

Tracklist

1 - Tea for Two  4:06

2 - Paris in the Rain  3:47

3 - One Jealous Moon  4:15

4 - Little Girl Blue  3:51

5 - I'm Old Fashioned  4:44

6 - When in Rome  3:15

7 - Triste  3:55

8 - Embraceable You  4:35

9 - In the Name of Love  4:17

10 - Don't Be a Fool  3:59

11 - Onwards and Upwards!  3:27

12 - Day in Day Out  4:21

13 - Road Chops  3:56