Ballad of the Sad Young Men

Anyone involved in Seattle's active jazz community knows respected bassist Anderson, a solid contributor for many years. But what about that "other" Clipper Anderson? I'll bet you didn't know about Clipper Anderson, the singer. In an era of "dime-a-dozen" female singers, how often do we encounter a male jazz singer? Not often, and that makes Anderson's debut vocal album all the more a winner. He conveys that "I've been there" feeling in his approach to a lyric. This elusive quality comes mostly from within. And Anderson "gets it." With Seattle colleagues Darin Clendenin on piano and Mark Ivester, drums, Anderson shines on an entire program of standards, mostly ballads. Among numerous highlights, how about these: the title tune, Tommy Wolf and Fran Landesman's opus; Cole Porter's resonating melody, "Everything I Love"; a tender sleeper called "Why Did I Choose You"; and Kurt Weill's optimistic, "Here I'll Stay." Finally there's Billy Strayhorn's final composition, "Blood Count." Anderson's take on this jarring emotional entry compares favorably to the drama brought to it some years back by Mark Murphy. On all these and more, Anderson's first venture into "vocal land" is no novelty. It's first rate jazz singing.