Imagine a jazz club with the voices of Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holliday,
Etta James, Lena Horne, Rosemary Clooney and others. Jaimee Paul and
her jazz combo, led by husband Leif Shires, on trumpet, delivers just
that.
“At Last” is a tribute to those fabulous female vocalists of the glory days of yesteryear. For Paul, “At Last” is very personal.
“All the great lady singers saluted were inspirations to me, and the
songs selected are among my innermost personal favorites,” she said.
“Some of them I have a long history with: My grandfather was a World War
II veteran and his favorite song was ‘Sentimental Journey,’ and we used
to listen to it together. ‘What A Difference A Day Makes’ always gets
me thinking about my wonderful husband, Leif, and the incredible day
that we first met. On the other hand, ‘Stormy Weather’ never fails to
start me thinking about all the lousy relationships I’ve been through,
that we’ve all been through.”
Paul sings of love, loss and the blues at Clover School District Auditorium on Oct. 7.
Raised in Southern Illinois, steeped in church choir, Paul was
influenced by gospel and blues, cultivating a special place in her heart
for Jazz.
“I was always involved with music,” Paul said. At the age of five she
began studying classical piano for almost 10 years, and from the third
grade on, she also played the French horn in school bands. She also sang
in both church and school choirs. Her parents are both musical: Her mom
taught music and piano in the public school system for 30 years, and
her dad studied music in college before deciding on a career in
engineering. “
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