PATRICE WILLIAMSON
Free to Dream (River Lily)

"Singer / performer/ composer / producer Patrice Williamson's second album Free To Dream shows the growth and maturity she's undergone since her sensational debut release My Shining Hour. I particularly liked "The Gentle Rain" for its moving flute solos. Her vocalese on the stylish "In The Loop" is reminiscent of the late great Sarah Vaughn for its precision and clarity and range. Her interpretation of "My Love Is" is sassy and filled with a confident stride. Mark Shilansky's arrangement of the Stevie Wonder gem "Another Star" has a haunting, exotic quality to it, Patrice delivering the melody in clear, confident tones.

Named "Best Jazz Vocalist" in Boston Magazine's 1997 "Best of Boston" awards, the talent and versatility of Patrice Williamson is even more obvious here as she sings and plays flute on a suite of sweet songs, many of which she wrote the lyrics and/or co-wrote the music for. This graduate of the University of Tennessee and the New England Conservatory of Music also produced this excellent CD. Patrice Williamson is definitely a rising talent in the jazz world...not just a rising vocal talent but a genuine all-around talent. Her grasp of the elements needed to create a good song is evident throughout this CD. Go out and grasp one for yourself."

–Carmen Miller
JazzUSA.com

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