Diane Daly - I Ain't Blue (2006)

I Ain’t Blue is a collection of jazz standards and contemporary compositions, encompassing a variety of musical influences from Billy Holiday to Phoebe Snow. As her producer, Wayne Wilentz, writes in the liner notes – The eclecticism of this CD is a paean to Diane’s versatility. It isn’t easy to cover Rogers and Hammerstein and Crowded House in the same recording and make it sound seamless – but that is exactly what she has done. Having lived an adventuresome life, dappled with wild and wonderful encounters - musical or otherwise, Diane knew she wanted to create an album that would capture all she’s learned about life and music.

After some time on her own in the Bahamas, Diane returned to the DC area in 1984 and began music studies at Montgomery College. Shortly after finishing, she followed her heart to Australia where she explored another world of music that wasn’t apparent from her pervious setting. A dozen years later, Diane returned to the Washington DC area and re-initiated vocal studies, this time with renowned jazz artists Ronnie Wells and Ron Elliston. From there, the door to the jazz world was graciously opened, with finest music (and musicians) beckoning her to come in and play along. Diane has now embarked on a course of graduate study in music education to help perpetuate the music that opened her soul.

Having had the opportunity to play and work with many notable musicians has left an indelible impression on Diane’s music. Apart from the players on her record, others include: the Eric Byrd Trio, Collector’s Edition, Mark Cook, Bill Potts, St Matthew’s Cathedral Choir, Rebecca Parris, Tony Backhouse, Coco’s Lunch, Jean Paul Wabotai, the Acapella group - Woyaya, the Kabaret Kamikazi ensemble, Project Natale, the Chris Grasso Trio, Ricky Loza, John Jensen, David Jernigan and Bob Price…… to name but a few. Diane knows how blessed she is to have had the opportunity to record an album with hand-picked musicians, the songs of her choice and a genuine support for her artistic sense. The deep emotional connection to the music is apparent from the first notes. The sentiments that unfold from there come at the listener, straight from the heart.