Marlene VerPlanck - It's How You Play The Game (2003)

Marlene VerPlanck is a veteran singer who still has plenty to offer jazz fans after nearly a half century as a professional. Her vocals are consistently clear, mellow, and swinging in this program dominated by show tunes. But her choices aren't ones that have exactly been done to death at the start of the 21st century. She soars in the bright bossa nova scoring of "I Got Lost in His Arms," while her warmth is obvious in "Be Careful, It's My Heart." The singer's enthusiasm is contagious in "I Wanna Be in Love Again," while her playful scatting seems effortless in the buoyant "Love Looks Good on You." Her husband, Billy VerPlanck, contributed the arrangements and two originals, the lovely ballad "Cocktails at Dawn" and "It's How You Play the Game," the latter, unfortunately, stands out like a sore thumb due to the annoying (and unaccredited) electric keyboards. But the band is a superb one, featuring no fewer than six members of the exciting big band Diva: drummer Sherrie Maricle, alto saxophonist Karolina Strassmayer, clarinetist and tenor saxophonist Anat Cohen, pianist Chihiro Yamanaka, trumpeter Barbara Laronga, and bassist Norika Ueda.

Tracklist:

01. It's How You Play The Game
02. I Got Lost In His Arms
03. Be Careful, It's My Heart
04. Easy To Love
05. May I Come In
06. My Man Benny
07. Only Trust Your Heart
08. I Wanna Be In Love Again
09. The First Thing About You
10. Love Looks Good On You
11. Experiment
12. Save You Love For Me
13. The Jazz Buff
14. Cocktails At Dawn
15. Maybe It's The Moon
16. All My Tomorrow's