Maci Miller - Round Midnight (2019)

In France, you certainly do not know this incredible vocalist, Maci Miller, who is part of the rising generation of jazz in the USA. “Round Midnight” is Maci Miller’s fifth album, and it’s a daring bet with vocals and guitar, and on that side David O ‘Rourke works wonders! The talent of this musician would make a good number of guitarists blush with jealousy who think they have the feeling, the sensitivity and touch that are the signature of this great artist, David O ‘Rourke. For those who do not know him yet, check out his website.
“Round Midnight” is an album of covers, recorded and arranged live, with a freshness and a spontaneity that I had not heard since the famous duos Joao Gilberto & Stan Getz. Years gone by, generations of artists too, and the beauty of this Maci Miller album lies in two things: a marvelous visionary interpretation plunging into the future, and backed up by a guitar magician whose career speaks for him, David O ‘Rourke. Thus, whether “Round Midnight”, “Quiet Nights” or “Nature Boy”, the works are never distorted, the arrangements are beautiful and discreet, supporting lightly and effectively the beautiful voice of Maci Miller.
At a time when the major jazz labels in Europe are forcing artists to revert to various standards by blithely slaughtering the work of Joni Mitchell and other artists for the sole purpose of “making sales”, here with “Round Midnight”, Maci Miller plays the card of simplicity and intelligence, and it is to salute, because all the standards present on this CD have already had in the past high level performers, which is not easy to rub . For a singer, interpreting a title should always go through a form of acting work, as is the case here, placing the desired moods on each title, simply by the modulation of her voice. And that, Maci Miller succeeds with a magic that bewitches us. Yes, Maci Miller is a great artist to discover urgently, and “Round Midnight” an indispensable album that will find its place as much in the gifts of Thanksgiving November 28 in the US as under the tree for those who celebrate Christmas, because it is an “essential” album for the editorial staff of Bayou Blue Radio & Paris-Move.