Dianne Reeves, Ronnie Scott's

No survey of the state of modern jazz voice would be complete without a mention for Dianne Reeves, an artist who many consider to be the successor to legendary divas like Carmen McRae and Sarah Vaughan. 

Her richly textured vocals can be smoky and soulful or effortless and carefree. Her scat solos are inventive and assured and her interpretations of melodies, be they timeless jazz classics, smouldering R&B covers, or originals, invariably offer the listener something new.

Beautiful Love – Reeves’ latest release and the focus of these Ronnie Scott’s appearances – comprises tracks from all three of those camps along with a gently grooving rendition of Stevie Nicks’ Dreams with a subtly re-harmonised chorus and a tribute to Reeves’ world music influences in the form of a scat vocal tango. 

Along the way the four time Grammy winner is joined in the studio by guests, including keys player of the moment Robert Glasper, guitarist Raul Midon, Esperanza Spalding, Gregory Porter and the late George Duke, who add further lustre to Reeves’ own star quality. 

But it’s the recording’s core quartet of drummer Terreon Gully, pianist Peter Martin, guitarist Romero Lubambo and bassist Reginald Veal who provide the support for this hotly awaited three night run.

Reeves’ reputation, bolstered by an onscreen appearance in George Clooney’s Good Night and Good Luck, for which she also performed the soundtrack, makes the chance to see her in such an intimate setting a relative rarity. It’s an opportunity not to be missed.