Recording
artist Nicolas Bearde has established himself as a powerful presence on the
contemporary vocal jazz scene over the past couple of decades. His silky
baritone, wit and engaging rapport captures and draws in audiences at his live
performances.
I Remember You: The Music
of Nat King Cole is Bearde’s newest CD and the sixth he’s released on his own
label, Right Groove Records. Bearde has long appreciated the music of Nat Cole,
one of his earliest influences, and produced this album in celebration of Nat’s
100th birthday. Though the ten songs on this project are associated with Cole,
Bearde breathes new life into the tunes with his rich, warm voice and supple
phrasing, imbuing each song with his own soulful and romantic interpretation.
Being a big fan of tenor saxophonist Eric Alexander's phrasing and tone, Bearde
brought him out from New York as a special guest for this project. Alexander is
featured on “Funny (Not Much),” “Thou Swell,” and “That Sunday, That Summer.”
Bearde was part of McFerrin’s ground-breaking a cappella group Voicestra. He
was also a long time member of SoVoSò, a vocal improvisation group that has won
numerous awards and honors, among them 1st place at the renowned Casa a
cappella summit awards, and nominations for "Best Group" and
"Best Album,” and Bearde as "Best Lead Vocalist."
Besides his
own solo and group performances, Bearde has had a fruitful acting career. He
has performed in several plays, including "Master Harold"… and the
Boys, as well as in film (Final Analysis with Richard Gere and Kim Basinger,
True Crimes with Clint Eastwood) and television (Nash Bridges and Monk). Bearde
is a master storyteller. There is a certain elegance to Bearde’s singing that
makes the songs on I Remember You: The Music of Nat King Cole, with their
updated, hip arrangements, as fresh and evocative as when they were originally
performed.
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