Tierney Sutton: Unsung Heroes

Mark Corroto

Senior Contributor since 1999

Mark misses his large dog Louie, but endeavors daily to find and listen to new and interesting sounds.

Recent articles (998 total)

Published: April 1, 2000

Miles Davis never shouted. I’m not talking about his damaged vocal chords. He rarely raised his musical voice above a whisper. Singer Tierney Sutton, like Miles, doesn’t raise her voice to make a resounding statement. Unlike so many upper range vocal gymnasts working today, Sutton favors articulation and quiet beauty as her approach. Funny so did the greatest of all, Ella Fitzgerald. Sutton, a semi-finalist in the 1998 Thelonious Monk Vocal Competition, has one prior release on A-Records (1997). This, her first domestic release, introduces us to a star headed for superstardom.

Sutton is a musician’s singer. She pays all due respect to famous compositions, adding appropriate lyrics to classics like Joe Henderson’s “Recordame” the opening track re-titled “Remember Me,” “All For One” recasting Wayne Shorter’s “Speak No Evil,” and “The Peacocks” played as “A Timeless Place.” It is often said that a singer’s voice acts as a musical instrument. For Sutton, this concept is her cornerstone. The ease and comfort she displays is a rare commodity for singers, and tells us that she is not the showpiece, the music is. Take “Joy Spring” the Clifford Brown classic. She coaxes the memory of Brownie in an Annie Ross-like scat and vocalization of words. Guitarist Jamie Findlay accompanies as well as Buddy Childer’s on Flugelhorn. The ease in which these musicians relate and interpret is a sprung joy. Sutton’s almost casual vocals are of course the product of practice and training. Like a Michael Jordan drive or a Miles Davis phrase, seemingly effortless performances reveal pure talent and a confident beauty.

Track List:Remember Me; Early Autumn; A Timeless Place; Bernie’s Tune; Spring Is Here Joy Spring; All For One; Indiana/Donna Lee; When Lights Are Low; Can Alma.

Personnel: Tierney Sutton

Record Label: Telarc Records
Style: Straight-ahead/Mainstream