Tara O'Grady - 2013 - A Celt in the Cotton Club

The title of Tara O'Grady's third album comes from a bass player in Nashville who upon hearing her sing in the Tennessee recording studio, tweeted the above quote to describe her voice. Her original songs were inspired by Irish people she met from Belfast to Butte, and everywhere in between. And she throws in a few favorite Irish traditional tunes for good measure. Inspired by Belfast native Van Morrison, her brother Tom O'Grady composed the music for To Be Missing the Sun and La Dee Da, and the featured saxophonist/clarinetist Michael Hashim co-wrote That's What the Miners Would Say, a tribute to the Irish immigrants who died in a fire in Butte, Montana. Tara's Celtic connections are woven through every inch of this musical tapestry, including a tribute to Billie Holiday in the song Gardenia Girl, revealing Lady Day's Celtic bloodlines.
Elizabeth TaylorΓÇÖs features, Billie HolidayΓÇÖs voice, Audrey HepburnΓÇÖs fashion sense, and a combination of Cole PorterΓÇÖs writing style with a touch of Nellie McKayΓÇÖs quirky lyrics. Tara OΓÇÖGrady is the full package. Featured on BBC Radio 2 in the UK and WFUV in New York, TaraΓÇÖs vocals have been compared to Ella Fitzgerald, Aretha Franklin and Patsy Cline, as well as modern artists Adele and Amy Winehouse. Hollywood Mega-Star Bruce Willis proclaimed his love of TaraΓÇÖs voice and band one night in Manhattan when he stormed the stage to sing along with her. She recently completed a book about her cross country road trip sponsored by Chevrolet and was featured as a cover girl on Automotive NewsΓÇÖ commemorative edition of ChevroletΓÇÖs 100th anniversary, November, 2011. Awarded as one of Irish VoiceΓÇÖs Most Influential Women of 2010 presented by IrelandΓÇÖs Prime Minister, her debut album, Black Irish, released in August of 2010, is a collection of Irish songs she grew up listening to as a child. But donΓÇÖt expect any jigs on the CD. SheΓÇÖs swinging it, baby! Black Irish caught the attention of NashvilleΓÇÖs elite, and within a few months of its release, Tara was writing original songs and recording in Music City, Tennessee with the finest musicians in the industry. Her second album, Good Things Come to Those Who Wait, was released in April of 2011.
Her voice, at times rich and deep, at others lilting and wispy, has been compared to the divas of days gone by. Her look is reminiscent of the Golden Age of Hollywood. Raised on Irish traditional music, as well as the sounds of Hank Williams, Louis Prima, Keely Smith, Peggy Lee, Louis Armstrong, Nat King Cole, Nina Simone, Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley, her unique style and repertory combine celtic, folk, blues, and especially jazz.
Born and raised in New York City, Tara spent every summer on her grandparentsΓÇÖ farm in Donegal, Ireland where she listened to her granny Nora singing in her kitchen. Her granny also loved to dance, but Tara had the rhythm of the sounds of the city streets in her soul, so the Irish step dancing didnΓÇÖt entice her. She instead found her way into the swing dancing scene and realized sheΓÇÖd rather be up on stage singing the songs that the dancers were swinging to. Under the advice of her eye doctor, who wore ΓÇ£really cool retro eye glasses,ΓÇ¥ she began to attend a weekly jam session with Wall Street bankers who sought jazz on Sundays as their passion on the side. In this alternative house of worship at the Off Wall Street Jam each Sunday for one solid year, Tara learned jazz standards and began to develop her style as an artist. She eventually formed an Andrew Sisters tribute band with some of those Sunday musicians and called it The Boogie Brawds. The ΓÇ£BrawdsΓÇ¥ were regular headliners at the Irish Arts CenterΓÇÖs Sundays at Seven in Manhattan. Later she formed her trio, The Tara OΓÇÖGrady Trio, which sometimes became a quartet or quintet depending on the guest musicians. With the release of Black Irish, she calls her band ΓÇ£The Black Velvet Band,ΓÇ¥ after one of the tracks.
Tara is a sought after recording artist adding her unique vocal stylings to everything from reggae albums to advertisement jingles. She has performed in New York at Birdland, Smalls Jazz Club, Lincoln Center, Swing 46 Jazz & Supper Club, The Astor Room, The Museum of the City of New York, and The Jewish Museum. She has performed with various artists while touring in Ireland, Spain and Argentina entertaining everyone from bullfighters to politicians.

Track list:
01 - On Feeling Blue
02 - You Won't Get Me There Tonight
03 - Black Is The Color
04 - In Belfast Tonight
05 - Go Lassie Go
06 - To Be Missing The Sun
07 - Love Me Madly Lashes
08 - That's What The Miners Would Say
09 - Where's My Valentine
10 - La Dee Da
11 - Gardenia Girl
12 - Too Ra Loo Ra
13 - Hidden Track

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