Blessed & Bewitched

5-STARS Recorded in Brooklyn, NY, and released on the Washington state-based Origin Records label in 2025, Blessed & Bewitched is a fine introduction to the music of Austria-based singer Maja Jaku. With her intriguing-sounding name and colorful background in her native Kosovo, Maja is sure to stir up interest with her Origin debut. Ostensibly free form jazz filled with a variety of jazz and pop influences, Blessed & Bewitched is tastefully driven by Maja's strong vocals. In addition, Maja also wrote, or co-wrote, all the music here, so there's also a spark of originality in her music that is equally enjoyable.

Co-produced by Maja and drummer/percussionist Adrian Varady, Blessed & Bewitched traverses a wide range of vocal-based jazz styles and moods, proving its diversity is its strength. Another element here is the R&B element in the sound of her voice. Moved by Maja's solid voice, the album gives all the musicians here a strong focal point to not only support her voice but also provides a strong platform to solo. Assisting Maja and co-producer / drummer Adrian Varady is the solid backing of Michael Rodriguez (trumpet), Alan Bartuš (piano), Dezron Douglas (bass), and Johnathan Blake (drums).

Blessed & Bewitched finds Maja's train-of-thought music guiding the listener through her own personal life experiences. The songs are powerful and relaxed, one obvious exception being "Blessing Will Come", a good showcase song for the syncopated, punctuated drumming of Adrian Varady. Maja can take credit for writing and/or co-writing much of the music here, with the exception being the final track "Everything Must Change", written by the late Bernard Ighner and "Never Let Me Go", written by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans for singer Nat King Cole in 1956. Time well spent for jazz fans, Blessed & Bewitched is a resounding success from European-based singer-songwriter Maja Jaku.