Lauren White is an extremely talented 20-year old from Texas who has been studying under the same vocal coach as Norah Jones. Lauren blends the sensuality and vulnerability of Norah Jones with the vocal range of Linda Ronstadt combined with a voice that exhibits both emotional depth as well as nuance and delicacy!
Lauren's first album features a wide array of songs, the album opens with a Billie Holiday styled tune “My One & Only”, then drops to the darker overtones of the Anthony Wilson arranged “Love For Sale”, and transitions into a swinging “Mack The Knife”. This album also includes memorable covers of popular songs like “Blue Bayou” (Roy Orbison), “Superstar” (Carpenters), and to the country influenced, “Why They Call It Falling” (Lee Ann Womack). Lauren White also displays an impressive talent for song writing with three original songs here including a retro-ish “Do You Remember”, a heartbreaking ballad “All I Do Is Cry” and an up-tempo “Brand New Love”.
Featuring Anthony Wilson on guitar, Bill Cunliffe on piano and Ricky Woodward on sax, the album was recorded at Sunset Sound by Joe Harley (producer) and Mike Ross (engineer). The all analogue two inch 24-track masters were mixed down to 1/2 inch 30 ips stereo at LA-FX in Burbank, CA. These master tapes were then used in the mastering of both the LP and SACD and feature a stunning all analogue recording experience! This new release is a must have for all fans of superb audiophile quality female vocals!
"If a comely 20 year old Texas vocalist can come to New York and snag Anthony Wilson, Bill Cunliffe and Ricky Woodard for her debut session, we are impressed at a whole lot of levels. With vocal chops she's been honing since childhood, White blows the roof of a set of standards that are plucked from all genres and brought home in her own way. Very much a vocalist you are going to want to hear more from as she's really got it going on and is going to blow you away." - Chris Spector, Midwest Record
"Ms. White's is a new name to me, but if this album is any indication we’ll all be hearing a lot more from her... the caliber of musicians used to back her is as stellar as the material. Pianists Bill Cunliffe and Brian Piper, guitarist Anthony Wilson, tenor saxophonist Ricky Woodward, bassist Chuck Berghofer, Hammond B-3 organist Joe Bagg, and drummer Mark Forber make sure that the playing is as strong as the vocals." - John Crossett, Soundstage.com
"This is a 45rpm, double-LP release put together by Groove Note’s house unit of producer Joe Harley and engineer Michael Ross, so you just know it’s going to sound good before you even drop it on the platter of your turntable. Harley and Ross have some of the best instincts and ears in the music industry, and they don’t fail them here. White’s voice is as realistic-sounding as I’ve ever heard. It’s full, rich, well delineated and three-dimensional. You can hear every inflection, and you get a superb sense of the interplay between the singer and band. As with Ms. White’s voice, the instruments are all clearly rendered with excellent timbre and tonality. At Last is a winner from the team of Harley, Ross and Groove Note." - John Crossett, Soundstage.com
"White has a captivating voice, is smooth and technically sound... The arrangements appear tailored to her voice. One of the creative geniuses of our day Anthony Wilson had his hand in writing new arrangements for Love For Sale, and the title track At Last. Bill Cunliffe worked up new arrangements for Mack The Knife, My Funny Valentine, and My One And Only." - Joe Montague, Riveting Rifts
"White invests the standards and originals of debut At Last with gratifying honesty, showcasing her vocal and songwriting talents. One tune that immediately stands out is "Superstar," the Delaney and Bonnie hit best known from the Carpenters' hit 1971 version. White's delivery claims the song as her own, not easy to do with a tune so closely associated with another artist..." - Ernest Barteldes
"Lauren White is a name that you should probably commit to memory, because the twenty-one year-old jazz singer from Dallas, Texas, possesses an abundance of talent, a great attitude, and is one of the most polite people you will ever talk to, qualities which will serve her well in the music industry." - Joe Montague, www.jazzpolice
Musicians:
Lauren White, vocals
Bill Cunliffe, piano (1, 5, 9)
Anthony Wilson, guitar (2, 4, 6, 11)
Ricky Woodard, tenor sax (4, 7, 9, 10)
Brian Piper, piano and arrangement (2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 10)
Chuck Berghofer, bass
Joe Bagg, Hammond B-3 organ (6, 11)
Mark Ferber, drums
1. My One And Only
2. All I Do Is Cry
3. Blue Bayou
4. Do You Remember
5. Mack The Knife
6. Love For Sale
7. Brand New Love
8. Superstar
9. My Funny Valentine
10. Why They Call It Falling
11. At Last
