Cyrille Aimée Brings Her Bright, Funky Flavors to Birdland

Cyrille Aimée’s most recent album, “Petite Fleur,” features the superb French-born jazz singer’s version of “Undecided,” the 1938 jazz standard written by trumpeter Charlie Shavers and popularized by Ella Fitzgerald. As was true with Fitzgerald, Ms. Aimée isn’t forced to decide between singing the lyrics or scatting; rather, she does both. Likewise, she is gloriously undecided about working in any single style of music, and seems open to every possibility.Take her Thursday night show at Birdland: It opened with her bright, funky band playing a bright, funky pop song. All of a sudden, Ms. Aimée bounced on stage wearing a bright, funky one-piece jumpsuit: She looked like she’d been strolling up the beach at Cannes or Rio, then happened to make an unexpected turn and found herself at Manhattan’s West 44th Street, in Birdland. For 80 marvelous minutes, she made us long for the summer — hopefully not too far away, though we were still wearing overcoats. The bright, funky vamp behind her quickly coalesced into a 1975 Isley Brothers hit, “For the Love of You,” which set the tone for the evening. Ever the traveler, Ms. Aimée took us on a tour of the great beaches and leisure spots of the world: We heard songs from Mexico (“Que se Siente que me estas matando”), France (“Faut Oublier”), Cape Verde, which could also represent either Brazil or Portugal (“Odjus Fitchad”), and, in the encore, from Brigadoon in Scotland (“Almost Like being in Love”). The latter was the only tune from the traditional American songbook, though there was also another ’70s soul standard, Stevie Wonder’s “Lately,” and three Cyrille originals. Virtually everything was sunny and upbeat, the rhythms were at once swinging and soulful, and it was like a party that seemed to be happening all over the world and in multiple genres of music all at once. Her band, with pianist Mathis Picard, tenor saxophonist Julian Lee, trumpeter Wayne Tucker, bassist Tamir Shmerling, guitarist Michael Valeanu, and drummer Pedro Segundo, was similarly international.So yes, the music of Cyrille Aimée comes in all flavors, both traditional and contemporary. At times she corresponds to our definition of mainstream jazz; at others there are more pop-rock elements, though it never quite sounds like what we used to call “fusion.” “Petite Fleur” was recorded at New Orleans with drummer Adonis Rose and the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra and features a slew of songs that emphasize the connections between France and the Crescent City.She sings mostly in French here. Sidney Bechet’s posthumous pop hit, “Petite Fleur,” sounds better in French (Marilyn Maye recorded the English lyrics, which are better left unsung), and there are also a set of French words to Django Reinhardt’s “Si Tu Savais.” Ms. Aimée’s sweet, tangy voice sounds wonderful backed by this ace orchestra. There’s also “I Don’t Hurt Anymore,” which doubles as either an R&B or a country song, and a real find, the 1919 “The Land of Beginning Again.” This sentimental ballad, briefly revived by Bing Crosby in his 1945 drama “The Bells of St. Mary’s,” is beautifully rendered by the orchestra and the singer as a sweetly nostalgic foxtrot. The other flavor for Ms. Aimée at the current moment is warmly intimate, as she displays on her other recent release (both are from 2021), “I’ll Be Seeing You,” a selection of voice-guitar duets with Mr. Valeanu. The selections are almost all standards, but she doesn’t sing them in a standard way; rather, she romps all over the chords and vivisects the melodies in a way that seems both classic and contemporary. She’s done at least three albums of these duos, with guitarist Diego Figueiredo and pianist Ryan Hanseler, and they represent a whole other aspect of her musical output. One other aspect of her show at Birdland: That bright funky jumpsuit she was wearing was graced with a leopard print. All I can say is, I am very glad I “spotted” Cyrille Aimée.

Cyrille Aimée Brings Her Bright, Funky Flavors to Birdland

Cyrille Aimée Brings Her Bright, Funky Flavors to Birdland

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