A New Standard

This Guy's in Love	Standard Time Sanitize Tom Waits's vocal cords, take some of the rasp out of Dr. John's, put some muscle into Bobby Caldwell's, combine them and you'll have an approximation of the quality of Steve Tyrell's voice. Like his popular 1999 debut, A New Standard, this is a meticulously recorded alb...	This Time of the Year This Time of Year serves up R&B and jazzy Christmas music from a singer whose style lies between the sophisticated elegance of Tony Bennett and the soulful grit of Dr. John. Tyrell clearly has a ball covering "The Christmas Song" and "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," the latter f...	Songs of Sinatra As its title indicate, this CD sees popular vocalist Steve Tyrell pay tribute to the Sinatra songbook, and pretty much every track is a famous nugget closely identified with the Chairman of the Board. That Tyrell is no Sinatra is a given, but the combination of his slightly hamm...	Swingin' With Style Monte Procopio's love for the classic tunes of the past is reflected in this musical portrait. With his 13-piece band, Monte presents some of America's best-loved songs in a classic swing band format using new arrangements that represent Procopio's energized approach to the music...
Disney Standards Following on his tribute to Frank Sinatra, Steve Tyrell continues to explore America's treasure trove of beloved standards with a collection culled from the Disney songbook. The oldest selection is "Baby Mine," a lullaby sung to the titular character by his mother in 1941's Dumb...	Standard Time	It's Time Michael Bublé's assured debut and the tireless year of globe-trotting touring he spent promoting it elevated the 20-something Vancouver native into the first rank of pop crooner revivalists. His sophomore studio follow-up largely turns on the same formula that helped make his co...	Renee Olstead No less an expert on pop affairs than Neil Sedaka likens the impossibly mature voice of 14-year-old vocalist/TV star (CBS' Still Standing) Renee Olstead to "Patsy Cline, Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday all wrapped in one." There's no disputing the sultry vocal talents showcase...	Michael Bublé Pop's rush to raid the cradle continues with this promising debut by 25-year-old Canadian singer Michael Bublé. And while the young vocal star's good looks are smart enough for a boy band, his muse seems to have sprung from a more sassy and compelling musical era. Mentored by Pa...

TIME REMEMBERED
This wonderful collection of standards, given superb treatment by Steve Tyrell and his A1 musicians, takes me back to the time when music and lyrics had class. A CD to add to my top-drawer collection.

Mister Smooth!
This collection of songs has to be one of the best collection of renditions I have ever heard. Steve Tyrell's voice is very distinct. Sometimes playful, other times a true crooner. But he really does justice to the choice of music here. 'Give Me The Simple Life', 'On The Sunny Side Of The Street' and 'The Way You Look Tonight' (An all-time favorite of mine) are done to perfection. All tracks are done straight with a great orchestra and arrangements, no doubt. Hearing this cd I thought to myself that he would be a better 'sinatra-esque' than a few others out there. The reason being his voice. I can't say much more than that. I promise if you like standards, you will really really really like this cd. Give it a shot.

Wow--One of the Finest Albums in the Last Decade
The title may seem overstated by some of you, but honestly this is such a terrific CD. Steve Tyrell was an A&R man in the record business for decades, and always had the dream of producing a record of standards. This is it, and a more delightful blend of jazz, vocals and arrangement you will not find. Steve's voice is certainly not the crooner type a'la Frank Sinatra, but has a gravely tone that quickly grows on you. Of all his CD's this one is the best. If you come out to LA, check the Catalina Bar and Grill because he performs there quite frequently and I have seen Burt Bacharach and Rod Stewart in the audience.

Take me back to better days of song.
Steve Tyrell has a voice that was created for for singing the standards and the music is really reminiscent of days gone by.

Warmth, Wit and a Bit of Grit
It's a funny thing, but singers with a little grit in their voices often have more appeal than their smoother voiced counterparts. Instead of coming across harsh or sinister, as you might expect, they more often exhibit a gruff but friendly folksy quality that is instantly winning. Maybe it's the old thing about the appeal of the less than technically perfect, and how a perceived "flaw" can actually be an aesthetic virtue. It may have something to do with how these singers develop an excellent sense of phrasing so as to maximize their vocal strengths and minimize (to the point of imperceptibility) any vocal weaknesses. Steve Tyrell is a case in point. His gravelly vocals give his interpretations of classic American standards a wry, warm appeal that is just about irresistable. It's hard to imagine any listener not responding favorably to Tyrell's ingratiating take on the Songbook. Just about every photo on the cover and insert has him grinning like sixty. And this sunniness is anything but fake. It radiates from every track. Vocally, he is often compared to more roots oriented artists like Dr. John and Leon Russell (and interestingly, Tyrell himself reportedly started off in a Texas R&B band himself). But I would link him historically to a high-spirited jazz-pop tradition personified by the likes of Louis Armstrong and Louie Prima. I first heard this album on rotation years ago in a chain store, and every track played stood out from the musical melange of whatever else was playing that day. I found myself thinking, well, in eight or ten more minutes, there should be another song by this great "new" stylist. (Who knew that he was a veteran producer, A&R man and performer with over 30 years in the business?) Of course, listening to the songs in rotation was a different experience from getting the disk home and listening to it straight through. Having done that (several times), I can begin to see the minor caveat that some have mentioned that the sunniness can begin to wear a little thin over the course of 17 tracks. (I find that I tend to play this CD in segments or in rotation even now.) Steve could perhaps dig a little deeper into a basically melancholy track like "I'm Through With Love." Singers who can pull off the trick of simultaneously conveying the wit and the pathos of that song approach greatness. I can't really say that Tyrell's version reaches quite that level. But like everything else on the album, it's stylish and elegant--and really darn good. I usually accept artists for what they are and what they can offer. Steve Tyrell, it would seem, is greatly entertaining, genuinely warm and witty, and is accomplished enough (and has connections enough) to guarantee polished arrangements by accompanyists who are among the best in the biz. Pathos does not seem to be his thing, and that's fine. (It's not insignificant that he chooses to close out this collection with a nicely done version of "Smile"). This is a classy record, with lots of heart. It all makes for an elegant evening in.