Adult Contemporary / Smooth Jazz

14 MP3 Songs
EASY LISTENING: Adult contemporary, JAZZ: Cool Jazz

Show all album songs: Somewhere In The Night Songs


Details:
MERCEDES HALL

Mercedes album, Somewhere In The Night, is the latest step forward in a career that has seen her span the country, headline clubs, appear on television and in film and draw impressive critical acclaim. The album showcases a talent who possesses the confidence, strength, soul and depth of a life richly lived.


Mercedes was born and raised in Boston, one of thirhteen children in a devout and musically gifted family. In her teens, she performed frequently in and around Boston, often with her sister, but she knew she would have to move. After a brief marriage that blessed her with a son -- now known to the world as Anthony Michael Hall, the popular actor -- Mercedes made her first stop, Las Vegas, where she quickly found work as a featured singer. Soon she was on to Los Angeles, where she formed her own group and again found work right away, earning celebrity fans like Redd Foxx, Liza Minelli, Steve Allen,Lou Rawls and Merv Griffin, who had her on his show many times.

After a year in Los Angeles, Mercedes headed to New York, eager to dive right into the music scene. She quickly built a name for herself, with the celebrated Copacabana as her home base. She also appeared in shows at Lincoln Center and Off-Broadway and did studio and TV work. The New York Post exclaimed, â Hall stakes a strong claim to being the leading white singer of rhythm & blues, with a dazzling range, cultured voice and stellar presence.â

In the 1980s, Hall turned her attention to life's other important activities -- managing her son=s career, marrying, having another child, going back to school. Mercedes performed and starred in contemporary productions with The Everyman Theatre Co. at Lincoln Center and the Off Broadway musical production of Carol King's "King's Tapestry" She also appeared in the hit film The Breakfast Club, fittingly, as Anthony Michael Hall=s mom, and she was the featured voice on Edelweiss quirky 1989 club smash "Bring Me Edelweiss", on Atlantic Records. In the mid 80's she resumed performing at all the major New York Jazz Clubs & Cabarets. During which time Mercedes became the first recipient of the MAC Award (Manhattan Association of Clubs) for Best Jazz Vocalist in addition to New Yorkâs Back Stage BISTRO Award for Outstanding Female Vocalist. It was at this time that Mercedes caught the attention of Madison Square Garden for which she was bestowed the honor several times to sing the National Anthem.

On Mercedes album Somewhere In The Night her passion is in abundant evidence. The mood is one of sultry sophistication, conjuring the mysteries, pains and pleasures of love in all its late-night guises. Mercedes= soulful, expressive voice brings the songs vividly to life, borne by sparkling jazz-tinged pop and R&B arrangements. Highlights include the pop/R&B crossover ballad 'Closer We Get To Love'; the hypnotically sexy first single, 'Could=ve Been'; and the Bacharach/David classic 'Walk On By', on which Hall demonstrates how she can make even a well-known song seem definitively her own. Mercedes co-wrote eight of the album's fourteen songs. âWalk On Byâ and Mercedes own âCouldâve Beenâ hit the TOP 40 Radio Charts across the country on the AC (Adult Contemporary) and Smooth Jazz formats. Director Producer Garry Marshall chose #14 Track on this album, âWho Needs A Miracleâ as the closing song for his Paramount Pictures Film: âDear Godâ Soundtrack..
The power in quality of the vocals captured in "Somewhere in the Night" were recently validated when her version of "Walk on By" became part of the OCEAN DRIVE BEST OF AMERICAN FM JAZZ CD. she joins the elite company of such artists as Patty Austin, The Rippingtons, Jon Lucien, Michael McDonald, Dave Grusin etc. on this extraordinary European release. Producers include Barry Eastmond (Anita Baker, Michael Bolton), Andre Fischer (Natalie Cole=s Unforgettable), Steve Skinner (Chaka Khan, Bette Midler, Patti Labelle, the Bee Gees) and pop/R&B/reggae master Andy Marvel (Diana King, Celine Dion). Musicians include Spyro Gyra founder Jay Beckenstein on soprano saxophone, guitarists Chieli Minucci (Whitney Houston, Jewel) and Grant Geissman, and percussionist Bashiri Johnson, who has worked with Whitney Houston and Sade.

QUOTES:

"Hall's album "Somewhere In The Night," a marvelously melodic collection of steamy jazz love songs, eight of which were written by Hall. One notable cut is the classic, "Walk On By," and Hall's sultry treatment is a singular achievement..It's obvious that the comparisons to such jazz and blues stars as Dinah Washington, Ella Fitzgerald and Aretha Franklin, which Hall has earned, are well founded."
Jay Miller / Patriot Ledger -Boston

â...is an ANOMALY...her sound quality, phrasing and feeling are more likely to conjure up memories of Dinah Washington or Aretha Franklin...â
Leonard Feather, L.A. Times

â...Mercedes Hall...sings just about the purest soul to come out of a caucasian mouth...Ms. Hall is a wicked generator of moods, has superb phrasing and musicianship.â

Hollywood Reporter

"Mercedes can sing, but more she can perform...I look at AC today and there are fewer and fewer format exclusive artists. We need a performer like her on our playlist

Radio consultant Mike McVay, McVay Media

"It's always exciting to be in on the discovery of a new talent......a pop singer with remarkable vocal and artistic range and a presentation that should propel her onto the top ranks once word of her star quality gets around...."
Lloyd Moss on WQXR-FM NYC

âHall stakes a strong claim to being the leading white singer of rhythm and blues...With her dazzling range, cultured voice and steller presence, Mercedes Hall puts on a show that builds energy like an atomic pile approaching critical mass.â

New York Post