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Let\u2019s hear it for the boys! More than 25 years after Melissa Manchester released Tribute, her 1989 album that honored the great female singers who influenced her, she turns the tables with The Fellas, a radiant encomium to the men, including Frank Sinatra, Mel Torm\xe9, Tony Bennett and Dean Martin, and the iconic songs they made famous.
Singing with a verve and emotional vulnerability that immediately captivates, the Grammy winner inventively reimagines these be-loved standards. She turns \u201cChances Are\u201d into a sly bossa nova and scats with seemingly impossible ease on \u201cLove Is Just Around The Corner,\u201d while bringing an understated urgency to \u201cNight and Day.\u201d
Many of these tunes embedded themselves into Manchester\u2019s musical DNA while she was growing up on New York City\u2019s Up-per West Side. \u201cThese were the artists and songs that were on the radio as my family ate dinner,\u201d she says. \u201cI am deeply familiar with this world.\u201d Indeed, Manchester brings a nuanced understanding to the songs\u2019 delicate phrasing and lyrical construction that would baffle lesser singers.
With The Fellas, Manchester completes a journey that began more than a quarter century ago, while also creating an exciting new chapter for her and her fans. And she\u2019s already thinking ahead to a possible second volume. \u201cWith all of these singers, for every song I chose, there were 20 more I could have chosen,\u201d she says. \u201cThere\u2019s so much music to mine. I\u2019m happy to be my fans\u2019 guide.\u201d