Thursday
Dec 26, 2019 at 5:15 AM
The Ames Chapel’s Third Annual Dead of Winter Series kicks off on Saturday, Jan. 11, at 7:30 p.m. with jazz/soul singer Cassandre McKinley.
JazzTimes Magazine describes McKinley as having a “warm, caramel-flavored voice — rather like Carole King via Nancy Wilson, with a layer of Aretha Franklin icing.”
Aural Musings likens McKinley’s voice to that of Norah Jones “in that she carefully straddles the line between jazz and pop without ever drifting too far to one side or the other.” It also lauds her “ability to find a way to immerse herself in each song and find that ineffable something that makes each tune special when she sings it — as if you are hearing it for the first time.”
Maybe that’s why the Boston Globe says McKinley’s version of Marvin Gaye’s “I Wish It Would Rain” “is moving enough to bring precipitation to the desert.” And why All Music Guide says she “puts a post-bop spin on ‘Trouble Man’ without sacrificing any of the song’s bluesiness,” and “Let’s Get It On” “becomes understated and torch-like” in her hands.
Come hear the singer that the Boston Globe has anointed the “queen of jazzsoul” against the backdrop of bassist Jesse Williams, who has played with such musical luminaries as Jay Giels and Maria Muldaur; drummer Dave Mattacks, who has wielded his sticks for the likes of Paul McCartney, Elton John, Everything But the Girl, Joan Armatrading, and the Moody Blues; and keyboardist Tim Ray, who has plucked the ivories for everyone from Lyle Lovett to Aretha Franklin to Bonnie Raitt.
The $20 ticket price includes free wine and beer and hors d’oeuvres. To purchase tickets for this or other events in the series, go to www.hinghamemetery.org.