Jazz Vocalist Penni Layne Warms Up Christmas with the Upbeat, Hopeful, and Romantic 'Warm in December'
(Boston, Mass) - Backed by a Jazz quartet, Penni Layne's "Warm in December" arrives
on November 29, 2024 from Upside. For many, Christmastime is a feeling more than a religious occasion and Jazz singer Penni
Layne ventured to capture the enchanting feelings of the holiday season and set them to music via a ten-song setlist comprised
of classics and an original song that she wrote with her co-producer Larry Jackson.
Layne, Jackson, and pianist Michael Kanan entered New York City's famed
Sear Sound studios equipped with fresh acoustic jazz arrangements of nine holiday chestnuts curated by Layne, who first began
ruminating on the album's playlist last Christmas.
After
opening with the fun frolic "Winter Wonderland," the title track swings and is permeated with allure. She is immediately
transported back in time with Nat King Cole's "The Christmas Song." "Let It Snow" is Layne's playful invitation
to beckon the gods to blanket the holidays with the delightful white stuff.
Layne and Jackson composed "At The First Snowfall" during the height of the pandemic, a
unique time in history during which families were encouraged to stay apart instead of coming together. The lesser known "I
Love The Winter Weather" is just as happy and romantic as the more popular tunes on the collection. It doesn't get any
more romantic and intimate than "A Christmas Love Song," on which Layne derived inspiration from Rosemary Clooney's
earnest and transcendent rendition. Her version of "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" is set to a bossa nova
beat.
Layne, Jackson (bass), Grammy winning trumpeter
Bijon Watson, keyboardist Ryan Claunch, and drummer Steve Bankuti will perform music from "Warm in December" at
an album release concert on December 13, 2024 at the Regattabar in Boston, not far from where they studied at Berklee College
of Music (Boston-born Watson attended the New England Conservatory of Music Preparatory School).
Layne has a passion for singing pages culled from the Great American songbook,
striving to honor those songs by performing them "with respect and integrity." And she's just as ardent about R&B
and, unexpectedly, EDM. In fact, she has an R&B collective called Penni Layne & The Wonder Boys and she indulges her
EDM persona under the PLM moniker, the latter with high-energy mixes from producer Andrija Gavrilovic. https://pennilayne.com.
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(Source: Great Scott PR)
