Sheila Jordan

In his collection of essays Shadow and Act, novelist Ralph Ellison writes about certain singers, female singers, who have “an uncanny ability to provoke our love.” He continues, “Their simplest songs sing in our hearts like the remembered voices of old dear friends.” Sheila Jordan is such a singer.  The ability to sing with great technique that is more than mere ruffles and flourishes is rare enough. Coupled with her almost unparalleled ability to examine the depth of a lyric, Jordan defines “jazz musician”. By personalizing the stories, her lyric readings, especially ballads, always the greatest test, are equaled by only a few other singers. Her main sources of inspiration are Billie Holiday and Charlie Parker…It has always surprised Jordan over the years to hear herself described as an “out” singer when so much of her inspiration comes from these two giants. Excerpt from Andrew Rowan's review in All About Jazz, December 2005.

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