For those of you not in the know, at the age of twelve, Patrisha Thomson heard Count Basie’s One O’ Clock Jump pouring out from a music store. “In that moment I knew this sound was me, and I would write songs expressing the same joy, but with contemporary lyrics.”

Classic jazz singers such as Billie Holiday, Anita O’Day, and Sarah Vaughan have influenced her music, along with contemporaries Ann Hampton Callaway and Dianne Reeves.

Listeners will also hear a touch of musical theater in her voice. Her childhood favorites are West Side Story, Ain’t Misbehavin’, and Porgy & Bess. On her new album, Wild is the Wind, anyone how has the summertime urge to slip into something cool will want to try this musical offering on for size.

For on her album, this LA-based vocalist delivers Great American Songbook faves and more with an engaging easy elegance. She has a light touch that’s expressive and nuanced, providing a balm to these unsettled times.

Wild is the Wind offers a collection of beloved tunes by the likes of Ellington, Jobim, Rodgers and Hart, and Johnny Mercer, plus an original bonus track.

Patrisha is clearly having a ball when Mon David joins her for a swinging, playful take on Route 66, for the twosome are clearly on the same page musically.

All Patrisha’s albums are available for purchase on itunes and Amazon.

1. In A Mellow Tone (3:52)
2. Dindi (4:58)
3. Route 66 (3:42)
4. Wild is the Wind (4:51)
5. There is No Greater Love (3:36)
6. You Don’t Know What Love Is (4:27)
7. Just Squeeze Me (4:26)
8. This Can’t Be Love (3:33)
9. A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square (4:22)
10. I Can’t Give You Anything But Love (4:06)
11. Autumn Leaves (4:41)
12. Frim-Fram Sauce (3:19)
13. The Happy Birthday Song (1:08) [Bonus Track]

This beautifully orchestrated, soothing to the soul new album opens on the gentle finger-snapping appeal of In A Mellow Tone and the almost atmospherically ethereal Dindi and they are followed by a jazzly-robust Route 66, the sweepingly elegant title track Wild is the Wind, and then comes the joyously upbeat swing of There is No Greater Love, the low ebb elegance of You Don’t Know What Love Is and the mid-tempo, smokey appeal of Just Squeeze Me is brought forth.

Up next is the free flowing hipsway of This Can’t Be Love and the delicate A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square, which are in turn backed by one of my own personal favorites from this album, the finger-snapping melodies of I Can’t Give You Anything But Love, and then we get the stunningly beautiful balladry of Autumn Leaves, the album rounding out on the playful Frim-Fram Sauce, coming to a close on the short, but sweet The Happy Birthday Song.

Musicians:
Vocals: Patrisha Thomson
Piano: Steve Rawlins
Guitar: Grant Geissman
Bass: Bob Feldman, Jennifer Leitham, Ken Wild
Drums: Bernie Dresel, Bob Leatherbarrow, Gordon Peeke
Percussion: Brad Dutz
Flute and Alto Flute: Scott Mayo
Tenor Saxophone: Tom Peterson
Trumpet: Michael Stever
Trombone: Ira Nepus

Official Purchase Link