A Kiss to Build a Dream On is a 2008 studio album by Jessica Molaskey, and her first with the pure jazz Arbors label.[1] It’s named for the song composed by Bert Kalmar, Harry Ruby and Oscar Hammerstein II in 1935, and recorded by Louis Armstrong in 1951.[2]
| A Kiss to Build a Dream On | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | September 2, 2008 | |||
| Genre | Vocal jazz | |||
| Length | 1:01:05 | |||
| Label | Arbors | |||
| Jessica Molaskey chronology | ||||
| ||||
It pays tribute to, as Molaskey refers to in the liner notes "various sized pieces of wood with strings attached."[3] It features her husband John Pizzarelli, Bucky Pizzarelli, Martin Pizzarelli, and Aaron Weinstein in this vein.[4]
Other tracks include show tunes, old standards,[5] and two originals written by Molaskey and John Pizzarelli.[1]
Reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
The album is among the highest rated of her works on AllMusic with four and a half stars. Music critic Ken Dryden concluded that "Molaskey will warm an audience of any size with this superb release."[1]
Christopher Loudon from the JazzTimes compared the album favorably to her Broadway performances, saying "a singing actress who can fully transport her stage skills to the recording studio, transforming each selection into a multihued mini-play."[4]
Stephen Holden wrote for the New York Times the "album of happy songs ... is so buoyant it eliminates any hint of Sunday school sermonizing from the concept of sweetness and light."[6]
Writing for Playbill, Steven Suskin praised the "canny song selection, impeccable musical instincts, and an unconditional love for the material."[5]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Happy Habit" | 3:46 | |
| 2. | "Medley: You Must Have Been a Beautiful Baby/Baby Face" | 4:20 | |
| 3. | "Hello Sunshine Hello" |
| 3:28 |
| 4. | "A Kiss to Build a Dream On" | 4:11 | |
| 5. | "Everybody Loves Louis" | Stephen Sondheim | 3:17 |
| 6. | "Tea for Two" | 4:09 | |
| 7. | "Take Me to You" | 3:41 | |
| 8. | "Breezin' Along With the Breeze" | 4:12 | |
| 9. | "Isn't he Something" | Stephen Sondheim | 3:47 |
| 10. | "Hiding in Plain Sight" |
| 3:46 |
| 11. | "I'm Looking Over a Four Leaf Clover" | 3:07 | |
| 12. | "You're Nobody till Somebody Loves You" | Larry Stock | 5:51 |
| 13. | "Ain't Misbehavin'" | 5:53 | |
| 14. | "Bye Bye Blues" | 4:49 | |
| 15. | "Heart's Desire" | 2:48 |
Personnel
edit- Jessica Molaskey – vocals
- John Pizzarelli – guitar, vocal duets (track 6, 10)
- Bucky Pizzarelli – guitar
- Aaron Weinstein – violin
- Larry Fuller – piano (track 10)
- Martin Pizzarelli – bass[3]
References
edit- ^ a b c d Dryden, Ken. A Kiss to Build a Dream On - Jessica Molaskey at AllMusic. Retrieved 2018-09-16.
- ^ "A Kiss to Build a Dream On". TheGuitarGuy.com. Retrieved 2009-10-20.
- ^ a b A Kiss to Build a Dream On (CD liner notes). Jessica Molaskey. United States: Arbors. 2008. ARCD: 19384.
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ a b Louden, Christopher (2018-12-01). "Jessica Molaskey: A Kiss to Build A Dream On". JazzTimes. Retrieved 2018-09-17.
- ^ a b Suskin, Steven (2008-10-13). "ON THE RECORD: Sondheim: The Story So Far; Molaskey's A Kiss to Build a Dream On". Playbill. Retrieved 2018-09-17.
- ^ Holden, Stephen (2008-09-10). "A Witty Musical Marriage Riding a Wave of Springy Pop-Jazz". New York Times. New York. Retrieved 2018-09-17.