For the Record...
Monique Danielle "Smile"
Review from Jam (Jazz Ambassador Magazine) Oct/Nov. 2008 Issue:


Personnel: Kansas City musicians: Roger Wilder, piano; Danny Embrey and Rod Fleeman (guitars); Bob Bowman, James Albright, Steve Rigazzi (basses); Rod Lincoln and Tim Cambron (drums); Stanton Kessler (trumpet, flugelhorn); Mark Cohick (baritone sax); Bay area musicians: Dan Shea (producer, piano, acoustic guitar, vibes, drums); John Thies (acoustic guitar); Dave McNabb (electric guitar); Dan Feiszly (bass); Rita Thies (alto/tenor/baritone saxes, alto/bass flute, percussion); Mike Olmos (trumpets, flugelhorn); Adam Theis (trombone) note: spelling of some personnel varied from promo material to liner notes

The first thing I noticed about Monique Danielle is her dead-on intonation; you could tune any instrument to this voice. The first few cuts were pleasant, pretty... the title song, “Smile,” a no-frills, smooth rendering — then a mellow “Taking a Chance on Love.” I was temporarily transported back to the (forgive me) good old 50’s and 60’s – Rosie, Patti, Jo, pop-chart Sassy, Ella, Dinah Washington. Speaking of whom, if you liked Dinah’s hit “What a Difference a Day Makes” you’ll love Monique’s, which begins with just bass under vocal and then bursts into a tight, open throttle big band chart beneath what is clearly one of the best singers I’ve yet to hear.

A bent-note “Summertime” is followed by a rhapsodically simplistic “Insensatez (How Insensitive)” demonstrating once again that gratuitous vocal gymnastics are always trumped by impeccable taste. This is a balladeer who instinctively lives in the song.

“You Do Something to Me” is cute and flirtatious in waltz time, Monique once more propitiously stretching the phrase(s).

(By now, I’ve heard so many great instrumental solos it would take another page to properly credit each; there are seventeen musicians on this CD, each a top-tier talent and most taking at least one turn. Plus, the arrangements will knock you out and the accompaniment on each cut is truly flawless. Buy the disc and witness for yourself.)

“The Look of Love” as a Tango? Monique not only makes Dan Shea’s fabulous chart work – her dark, sensual conformation will surely raise an eyebrow or two. An ever-so-slow, soulful “At Last,” perfectly seasoned with Rod Fleeman’s unmistakable comping, gives way to “This Can’t Be Love,” the vocal effortless, self-assured, ideation-R-us.

Another surprise: a 6/8 “That’s All.” I played this again and again, mesmerized by the smooth, flawless intervals. YIKES!!!! This woman lives and works right here in Kansas City. We are indeed blessed.

It take chops to hold your own with guitar, bass, and (drum) brushes but – no surprise – Monique has ‘em and shows ‘em off with “It Could Happen to You,” tossing in a modulation for good measure (pardon pun). The beat-one emphasis in Dorian “Nature Boy” gives it a gypsy-like essence — romantic...transportive.

Tightly clustered horns usher in the somber, reflective “Angel Eyes,” and ever-so-gentle “A Child is Born” is so soft and delicate you’ll not want to move...breathe.... do anything to interrupt the ambiance. No apologies for the hyperbole – this is a GREAT CD.

— Carol Comer

Jazz.com Review
At Jazz.com, we review individual cuts in order to bring a more in-depth insight into the jazz canon we so admire. I don't know how other reviewers at jazz.com do their thing. But often while I am writing a review, the CD continues to play the remaining songs. My ear memory recalls the subject piece so I have no trouble typing away my strong opinions as different music plays away in the background. But sometimes the remaining music is so compelling that my unbreakable stream of thought is broken and I must stop the task at hand to listen more fully. This is good for my musical enjoyment but not so good for my wallet. I get paid by the word. The more words I can write in the least amount of time, the better. So you know by now I had to stop writing this review and concentrate on what else Ms. Monique was offering. Damn. Though I am reviewing only one cut, I want you to know that I absolutely loved the whole album.

"Smile" isn't even my favorite number. "The Look of Love" is. It is wonderfully arranged and creatively performed in sort of a Spanish mode. But I can't call that piece jazz. "Smile," like many other tunes on the album, would fall under the same jazz category we allow Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Dinah Washington, et al. Everyone is familiar with this standard. So the best thing for me to say is that Monique Danielle has been blessed with a wonderful voice
and the intuitive skills and taste to put that voice to its best use. There is not a hint of pretense in her interpretation. Music is about honesty after all. Surrounding herself with very good musicians and having the benefit of superlative arrangements doesn't hurt either. I unhesitatingly sing the praises of Monique Danielle and recommend that you listen to her immediately.

--Jazz.com (Walter Kolosky)


KC Confidential 9/09
JazzTime: Smile along with Monique Danielle & KC’s best
mark

I may be as much as a year late getting around to the tasty CD “Smile” by local chanteuse Monique Danielle, but it still brought that eponymous expression to my face. Ms. Danielle and a collection of KC’s best sidemen (and women) wrap their lovin arms around some great standards on this locally-produced recording. Find it at your favorite Barnes & Noble or check it out at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/moniqued5.

Monique brings some great vibes to her performances here– sometimes sweet, sometimes sassy, sometimes even smokey, as she kindles a torch song with the best of em. Things get off to a pleasant start with the title track, featuring some lovely instrumental trade-offs by guitar hero (the real kind) Danny Embrey and Stan Kessler on that oh-so-mellow fluegelhorn of his. Sub Rod Fleeman for Danny and add a bouncy bottom courtesy of Bob Bowman and you’ve got track two, Monique’s take on the Vernon Duke standard “Taking a Chance on Love.”

I liked the big band charts on “What A Difference a Day Makes”– nice job by Adam Theis on those arrangements. And Ms. Danielle’s smokin’ “Summertime” gets nice support from Rita Thies on flute, with Steve Rigazzi, Roger Wilder and Rod Lincoln laying the groundwork on bass, piano and drums, respectively (Roger plays alot of keyboard on this fine album).

Monique stretches her chops with some Portugese lyrics on “Insensatez”– I don’t think Karrin Allyson has anything to worry about here, but it’s nice to see Ms Danielle playing the field. She keeps that Latin feeling going– and makes a damn fine recording, in the process– on the Bacharach-David hit “The Look of Love.” This may be one of my favorite arrangements of that tune. The album’s ever-present “Dan S” makes this one happen, adding some tasty flamenco guitar to the smoldering stew he’s arranged of the tune.

The hits just keep on coming. Monique really fires up the great Harry Warren saloon song “At Last” in a nice R Wilder arrangement. I prefer the swinging arrangement of “Nature Boy” to Monique’s ballad approach (you know, I’ve heard so many versions of this great song that I’m not sure what the tempo’s supposed to be in the first place). Stan K does a nice job arranging and soloing on “Angel Eyes.” And the whole thing winds up sweetly with just Roger and Monique on “A Child is Born”– a paean, perhaps, to Ms Danielle’s daughter, Maya Simone, to whom the album is dedicated.

You can catch Monique at Jardine’s October 9, 2009 at 10:30 pm.


Various reviews about Monique's other CD's and Performances......

RHYTHM, BLUES & ALL THAT JAZZ - KANSAS CITY, CONCERT
Monique Danielle's renditions of Gershwin's "Summertime" and Billie Holliday's "God Bless the Child" were show stoppers. When she sang Ella Fitzgerald's "At Last," there was a moment at the end with a slight pause before the final "at last." The audience could feel that high note coming, and we knew it was going to be perfect, and it was. An immediate standing ovation followed.
Reviewed by: Deborah Ground Buckner (Kansas City Correspondent - USA)


“Her name might not ring a bell, but her voice might. On “Resolution,” her first solo record, she sings nearly a dozen Jazz-tinged R&B/soul ballads in a crystalline voice, that will remind you of megastar vocalist like Anita Baker and Toni Braxton.”

--Kansas City Star (Timothy Finn)

“Monique is poised to become Kansas City’s hottest female vocalist. Crossing the genres of numerous African influences, Reggae, R&B and soul, it appears Monique can do it all!”

--Roger Naber (Grand Emporium)

“She demonstrates diversity all over this record. The production is clean, and the accompaniment is solid throughout the many mood changes. The element that never changes though, is Danielle’s rich, sinewy voice, which draws constant attention but never cries for it.”

--Kansas City Star (Timothy Finn)