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In Memoriam: John Hammond Jr., 1942–2026
John P. Hammond (aka John Hammond Jr.), a blues guitarist and singer who was one of the first white American…
Diana Krall has recorded a new rendition of “Blue Skies” for her forthcoming album, Turn Up The Quiet, which will be released on May 5.
(Photo: Mary McCartney)Fans of singer-pianist Diana Krall will want to check out her elegant rendition of “Blue Skies,” which appears on her forthcoming album Turn Up The Quiet (Verve), available May 5. DownBeat is premiering Krall’s version of the 1926 Irving Berlin classic, recorded with bassist Christian McBride and guitarist Russell Malone:
Krall returns to the Great American Songbook for Turn Up The Quiet, which also includes her renditions of “Like Someone In Love,” “Night And Day,” “Moonglow,” “I’m Confessin’” and “I’ll See You In My Dreams.”
“I have thought about these songs for a long time,” Krall said. “Being in the company of some of my greatest friends in music allowed me to tell these stories just as I’d intended. ”
In addition to performing “Blue Skies,” the line-up of Krall, McBride and Malone returns near the close of the album for a version of Johnny Mercer’s “Dream,” which also features an orchestration by Alan Broadbent.
Fiddle player Stuart Duncan is featured on “I’ll See You In My Dreams,” while Marc Ribot provides some of his most lyrical guitar playing on “Moonglow.”
Other collaborators on the album include bassists John Clayton and Tony Garnier, as well as drummers Jeff Hamilton and Karriem Riggins.
Turn Up The Quiet is a co-production with Tommy LiPuma, producer of many of Krall’s most acclaimed albums, including All For You, The Look Of Love and Live In Paris. The new album was engineered and mixed by Al Schmitt at Capitol Studios in Hollywood, California.
Krall will launch an extensive world tour on June 2 at the State Theatre in Minneapolis. Other stops on the U.S. portion of the tour include Ann Arbor, Michigan (June 6), Newark, New Jersey (June 16), Boston (June 17), New York City (June 21), Highland Park, Illinois (June 28), Park City, Utah (July 21), San Francisco (Aug. 5), San Diego (Aug. 8) and Phoenix (Aug. 9).
Krall will then take a break before heading to Europe. The European leg begins on Sept. 10 at the Musikteater in Vejle, Denmark, followed by shows in Amsterdam (Sept. 11), Berlin (Sept. 15), Vienna (Sept. 18–19), Brussels (Sept. 25), London (Sept. 27–28), Oslo (Oct. 1), Paris (Oct. 7–8) and Barcelona (Oct. 17).
Krall topped the Female Vocalist category of the 2016 DownBeat Readers Poll, and last fall Verve released her 2005 holiday collection, Christmas Songs, on vinyl for the first time.
For more information on Krall, visit her website. DB.
Hammond came to the blues through the folk boom of the late 1950s and early 1960s, which he experienced firsthand in New York’s Greenwich Village.
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