Anna Wilson

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Time Changes Everything

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Released: Jan 1, 2009

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Time Changes Everything
4:44
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Back In The Day
3:08
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A House A Home
4:45
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Yule Swing
4:07
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You Don't Know Me (w/Matt Giraud)
4:50
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Total Plays: 47,310 / Plays Today: 3See All Featured ►

General Info

Genre: Jazz / Pop
Location Nashville, Tennessee, Un
Profile Views: 79069
Last Login: 6/15/2012
Member Since 8/27/2005
Website www.annawilson.com
Record Label Music World Music/Transfer Records
Type of Label Indie
Bio
Anna Wilson’s revolutionary new album, Countrypolitan Duets, creates a magical union of country, jazz and pop by effortlessly blending the genres to form a fresh but timeless new sound that pays homage to Nashville’s musical roots. “I would describe it as country music and jazz music shaking hands because it’s a real fusion of two great American musical art forms,” Anna says. But that modest description is an understatement, according to noted author/music historian Robert K. Oermann, who says, “Top vocalist Anna Wilson has made the first album that fully marries jazz to country music…Anna Wilson is not just ‘shaking hands’ with two Nashville traditions. She is embracing them both. Brilliantly.” Anna, a sultry and soulful jazz singer and award-winning songwriter, is joined on this project by some of country music’s biggest names, from current chart-toppers like Keith Urban, Lady Antebellum and Rascal Flatts to legends such as Kenny Rogers, Ray Price and Connie Smith. In addition, famed jazz musicians Rick Braun and Larry Carlton added their unique musical interpretations to create a sound that is appealing to jazz and country fans alike. Indeed, the response to the project, which she co-produced with her husband, songwriter Monty Powell, has been both immediate and overwhelming. For instance, the album’s debut single, the duet “You Don’t Know Me” with American Idol’s Matt Giraud, hit No. 1 on the iTunes jazz chart – where it remained for four days--after singer Adam Lambert tweeted about his love of the song. The album’s title was inspired by “The Nashville Sound” which was the pop-leaning style of country music of the late 1950s and 1960s that featured lush string arrangements and compelling horn sections and garnered mainstream success for artists such as Eddy Arnold, Jim Reeves and Patsy Cline. During this era, jazz and country naturally intersected, and this album is an effort to bridge the gap that has developed in subsequent decades. Anna’s concept was to record classic country standards such as “Night Life,” “Walkin’ After Midnight” and “For the Good Times” with jazz arrangements embodying sophisticated new interpretations. “Countrypolitan Duets came about as an answer to the question that I always get in every interview, ‘What’s a jazz singer doing in Nashville?’” Anna says. “I realized I was in a unique position as an artist to combine these two genres, with a concept record in a way that had never been done before. My jazz artistry and the records I recorded in the past, for the most part, embody original jazz songs that I write that sound like they belong ‘back in the day.’ But as a member of the Nashville music community, when it came time to record standards, I chose classic country songs.” While recording Countrypolitan Duets has been an important step in Anna’s musical evolution, she will most remember it for the “chill-bump moments” it provided her with her musical heroes and friends. Ray Price, then 83, had to cancel his first session because of illness and reschedule it four months later. “He walked into the studio and nailed his vocal on ‘You’re the Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me,’ in two takes,” Anna recalls. “There wasn’t a dry eye in the control room, including Jay DeMarcus from Rascal Flatts, who had temporarily lent us his studio because mine had been temporarily down.” “Another magical moment was when Connie Smith came back to the studio on her 68th birthday,” Anna says. “She had already sung her part and was finished, but because she was so excited about the track, she wanted to see the big band horns recorded. And then there was Keith Urban, who after singing his vocal on ‘Good Time Charlie’s Got the Blues,’ walked over and picked up one of Monty’s guitars and asked if he could play the guitar solo.” “Recording with Kenny Rogers was a dream come true,” she says of “For the Good Times.” “He didn’t just come in and sing his lines. He was really concerned about how we could make it better. He said, ‘Duets are kind of my specialty, so if you don’t mind, may I make a few suggestions and you can use whatever you want?’ Everything he suggested was right on the money.” Anna has released three albums, and this marks the follow-up to her 2008 original holiday project Yule Swing! (Transfer), which earned her slots on three Billboard charts, including No. 12 on the Overall Jazz chart. She has shared billings with Josh Groban, Al Jarreau, Keith Urban and others and is featured performing her self-penned song “A House, A Home,” which appears in Habitat for Humanity’s international public service announcement campaign. “She’s got a voice like crème de cacao and an inner metronome that swings wildly from age to age,” says Jazz Times. The Philadelphia Daily News says, “Her material evokes the song-craft spirit of a Carole King, while her dramatic, vibrato-rich voice sounds at times like a young Bette Midler.” She’s also a prolific songwriter who has penned songs for Reba McEntire, Brooks & Dunn, Billy Ray Cyrus, Lee Ann Womack and Chris Cagle. She co-wrote “If I Knew Then,” which is featured on Lady Antebellum’s mega-hit album, Need You Now, and received a prestigious ASCAP award for co-writing the 2008 Chuck Wicks country hit, “All I Ever Wanted.” She and her older sister were raised in Chester Springs, Pennsylvania, by her mother, a homemaker and piano player who introduced her daughters to American songbook standards, and her father, a teacher and coach who had always encouraged his daughters to study an instrument. She began piano and guitar lessons and wrote her first song in fourth grade. She spent years singing into a hairbrush in front of a mirror, with a stack of her mom’s music books, but she didn’t decide to pursue music as a career until her sister took her to a Judd’s concert for her 17th birthday. ”I had wanted to be a singer since I was five but my parents didn’t know anything about the music business so it seemed impossible to really find a way into it. Mostly just a dream,” she says. “At first they were not happy with my sister for taking me to that Judd’s concert because it wound up being the tipping point for me that made me realize I had no choice but to chase the calling of a career in music. My parents understand that now. Music chooses you, and when it does, your only option is to follow your heart.” Eager to launch her music career, she rushed through Baltimore’s Loyola University in three years and moved to Nashville 15 days after graduation. Although she loved American standards, the music earning airplay on MTV and VH-1 was mainstream pop, so she thought she would have to leave behind her jazz inclinations to have a larger platform for her artistry. But her jazz talents were too powerful to be denied for long. When she released her first album The Long Way (Curb/Asylum), a singer-songwriter project inspired by the Lilith Fair movement, critics described her as a jazzy Stevie Nicks. Meanwhile, artists such as Diana Krall, Norah Jones and Michael Buble began enjoying mainstream appeal with jazz. “I thought, ‘I wonder what would happen if I wrote a jazz song’, because I never tried,” she says. “I sat down one day and did. I haven’t stopped since.” You can find her amazing original jazz songs that sport a fresh modern day lyrical appeal on her past two critically acclaimed jazz albums, Time Changes Everything and Yule Swing! Countrypolitan Duets is the brainchild of Anna Wilson. Through it she gives listeners an experience of how she uniquely blends jazz and country music. Fans will hear top stars croon, and jazz instrumentalists strut their improvisational chops peppered with a little Texas swing and twang. Wilson says, “There have been moments in musical history when country and jazz were not so far apart. In my life, they are always combined, and through this project, jazz and country will once again get to shake hands. I couldn't be more thrilled about that."
Members
THE "JAZZ YOUR AZZ" BAND is Sean Smith (bass), Matt Bubel (drums), Jeff Franzel (keys), Monty Powell (guitar), Max Abrams (sax), and Anna Wilson (piano/vocals). .. {} .. ............ .. .. .. ............Myspace Layouts.... - ....Solid Colors Myspace Layouts...... ....Myspace Codes.... - ....Myspace Generators.... - ....Myspace Backgrounds.... .. .. .. ..
Influences
Frank Sinatra, Barbara Streisand,Carole King, Irving Berlin, Cole Porter, Laura Nyro, Stevie Nicks, Jackson Browne and Fleetwood Mac... .. .. ...... .. .. ....Buy TIME CHANGES EVERYTHING on iTunes.... .. .. "She’s got a voice like crème de cacao and an inner metronome that swings wildly from age to age. Indeed, judging from this sophomore effort, Pennsylvanian Anna Wilson has yet to meet a musical era she doesn’t like... .. .. Winding her way through 13 original tunes—most built around optimistic sentiments of the look-for-the-silver-lining and love-gone-right variety—and one cover (a sly and slightly pouty reading of “Wedding Bell Blues,” Laura Nyro’s peppy homage to an overanxious bride-in-waiting)—Wilson suggests a hip Gen-Xer decked out in vintage couture. Though her postmodern sound is distinctly her own, she can evoke the 1930s (the zingy “Gonna Dance”), ’40s (the smoky “Fedora”) or ’50s (the creamy “Sentimental Sundays”) with uniform ease. Most remarkable, though, is Wilson’s ability, as a songwriter, to capture the past with such validity, never expressing a feeling that sounds forced or faux."......JAZZ TIMES, Christopher Louden.. .. .. .. .. “Everybody loves Christmas, and most artists have it in them to record Christmas music at some point in their careers. However, it is the rare singer who trims the tree with all-new material. Wilson does, and it's a beauty.”......ALL ABOUT JAZZ, October, 2008.. .. .. “YULE LIKE HER: I had to scrub my vow to not play any Christmas 2008 albums before November, so I could check out what Chester's gift to jazz vocalising, Anna Wilson, had to share on "Yule Swing" And what a hoot it turned out to be, with original Wilson tunes and sophisticated, horn- and piano-flecked arrangements that reflect her love and mastery of classic-jazz pop.”…….PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS—October, 2008.. .. .. But if you want to pre-emptively strike against hearing "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" for the umpteenth time out of your stereo, "Yule Swing," a 10-track holiday collection from Anna Wilson, should be your pick. It's a fun, brassy and yes, swinging, Christmas album that will earn raves from your house guests who are also tired of decking the halls.” SALT LAKE TRIBUNE, September, 2008.. .. .. ............ .. .. ....Buy YULE SWING! on iTunes .... .. ..
Sounds Like
Sounds like a female a female Michael Buble meets Jamie Cullum, also a little Norah Jones, Diana Krall and Billy Holiday all rolled into one with unique original songs and American Songbook standards!.. .. .. .... .. .. .. .... .. .... .. .. .. .... .. ...... .. .. .. .... .. .. .... .. .. .. ....

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Anna Wilson & Matt Giraud

03:58 | 124 plays | Jan 29 2011

Photos

Music

Countrypolitan Duets
13 Songs | Apr 5, 2011
Countrypolitan Duets
11 Songs | Apr 5, 2011
Yule Swing!
10 Songs | Oct 7, 2008
Time Changes Everything
16 Songs | Feb 13, 2007

Comments

Bio:

Anna Wilson is a critically acclaimed jazz artist and songwriter whose recent album, Yule Swing!, reached 12 on the Billboard jazz chart. Her rich and powerful voice, which “Jazz Times” likens to “crème de cocoa,” has earned her shared billings with Josh Groban, Al Jarreau, and countless others.

Wilson’s current album project, Countrypolitan Duets, showcases a time in Nashville’s musical history when country and jazz were not so far apart, particularly in the late 1950s and early 1960s. It presents country standards like “You’re the Best Thing that Ever Happened to Me” and “Night Life” to contemporary jazz listeners as duets with legendary and current performers who work across genres. Countrypolitan Duets guest artists range from Country Music Hall of Fame Member, Ray Price to superstar country artists like Rascal Flatts and Kenny Rogers to Grammy-winning jazz guitar icon, Larry Carlton.

The first Countrypolitan Duets single, “You Don’t Know Me,” features “American Idol” Matt Giraud. This digital release reached 1 on the iTunes jazz chart January and March, 2010.

In addition to Wilson's jazz artistry, she is a successful songwriter with lots to be jazzed about. Reflective of the two musical genres that define her career – jazz and country, she co-wrote one of the hottest country singles of 2009, Chuck Wick’s “All I Ever Wanted” (RCA) that reached 12 on the Billboard country chart. She followed in 2010 with “If I Knew Then” appearing on Lady Antebellum’s mega-hit release, Need You Now (Capitol). These recent accomplishments nicely complement Wilson’s remarkable catalogue that include cuts with Reba McEntire, Brooks & Dunn, Lee Ann Womack, Billy Ray Cyrus, and Chris Cagle, among others.

Wilson's Countrypolitan Duets gives listeners the experience of how she uniquely blends jazz and country music. Fans will hear top stars croon, and jazz instrumentalists strut their improvisational chops peppered with a little Texas swing and twang.

Wilson says, "There have been moments in Nashville’s musical history when country and jazz were not so far apart. In my life, they are always combined, and through this project, jazz and country will once again get to shake hands. I couldn't be more thrilled about that."

Born and raised in Chester Springs, Pennsylvania, Anna Wilson has lived in Nashville for nearly 20 years. There, she continues Music City’s rich songwriting tradition while recording innovative vocal jazz projects.

Member Since:

August 27, 2005

Members:

THE "JAZZ YOUR AZZ" BAND is Sean Smith (bass), Matt Bubel (drums), Jeff Franzel (keys), Monty Powell (guitar), Max Abrams (sax), and Anna Wilson (piano/vocals). .. {} .. ............

Myspace Layouts - Solid Colors Myspace Layouts
Myspace Codes - Myspace Generators - Myspace Backgrounds

Influences:

Frank Sinatra, Carole King, Irving Berlin, Cole Porter, Laura Nyro, Stevie Nicks, Jackson Browne and Fleetwood Mac.

..

Buy TIME CHANGES EVERYTHING on iTunes

"She’s got a voice like crème de cacao and an inner metronome that swings wildly from age to age. Indeed, judging from this sophomore effort, Pennsylvanian Anna Wilson has yet to meet a musical era she doesn’t like.

Winding her way through 13 original tunes—most built around optimistic sentiments of the look-for-the-silver-lining and love-gone-right variety—and one cover (a sly and slightly pouty reading of “Wedding Bell Blues,” Laura Nyro’s peppy homage to an overanxious bride-in-waiting)—Wilson suggests a hip Gen-Xer decked out in vintage couture. Though her postmodern sound is distinctly her own, she can evoke the 1930s (the zingy “Gonna Dance”), ’40s (the smoky “Fedora”) or ’50s (the creamy “Sentimental Sundays”) with uniform ease. Most remarkable, though, is Wilson’s ability, as a songwriter, to capture the past with such validity, never expressing a feeling that sounds forced or faux."......JAZZ TIMES, Christopher Louden

“Everybody loves Christmas, and most artists have it in them to record Christmas music at some point in their careers. However, it is the rare singer who trims the tree with all-new material. Wilson does, and it's a beauty.”......ALL ABOUT JAZZ, October, 2008

“YULE LIKE HER: I had to scrub my vow to not play any Christmas 2008 albums before November, so I could check out what Chester's gift to jazz vocalising, Anna Wilson, had to share on "Yule Swing" And what a hoot it turned out to be, with original Wilson tunes and sophisticated, horn- and piano-flecked arrangements that reflect her love and mastery of classic-jazz pop.”…….PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS—October, 2008

But if you want to pre-emptively strike against hearing "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" for the umpteenth time out of your stereo, "Yule Swing," a 10-track holiday collection from Anna Wilson, should be your pick. It's a fun, brassy and yes, swinging, Christmas album that will earn raves from your house guests who are also tired of decking the halls.” SALT LAKE TRIBUNE, September, 2008

Buy YULE SWING! on iTunes

Sounds Like:

Sounds like a female Jamie Cullum meets Michael Buble, also a little Norah Jones, Diana Krall and Billy Holiday all rolled into one with unique original songs!