If You Knew Her

London-based singer Zara McFarlane stands out from the crowded field of young singers in the global jazz scene; she writes much of her own material, an all-too-rare asset among jazz vocalists. As with her first album, her second effort is an earthy blend of slow to midtempo post-bop tunes that are stripped to their very essence with piano and/or bass carrying the songs on their own. When she does add in drums and horns, the tension of those taunt arrangements are cathartically released; “Her Eyes” sounds positively lush in a piano trio setting. She also adds elements of African music (“Open Heart”) and Caribbean music (a cover of Junior Murvin’s reggae classic “Police and Thieves”) that further the stark spell she weaves. Other standouts include “Plain Gold Ring” (with a fine guest turn on trumpet and vocals by Leron Thomas) and a dramatic, outward-leaning sax solo on “Woman in the Olive Groves” by Binker Golding. It all points to a rosy present and future for this promising singer/composer.

MOBO-nominated jazz producer, songwriter, vocalist, and multi-instrumentalist Zara McFarlane: "This album is dedicated to all the strong, beautiful women who have touched my life with their strength, courage, empathy, humour, wisdom & love."

The pared-down beauty and integrity of this remarkable new album is all the more exciting given the quantity of stylistic clutter typically associated with its two principal genres, jazz and soul. Showing excellent taste and artistic self-confidence, McFarlane has stripped away warbling vocal ornaments, stale generic phrasing and redundant backing tracks, trusting the assured, true-grained timbre of her voice to carry the emotional weight of her potent and original writing.