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Cassandre McKinley
In this body of work, McKinley delivers her interpretation of selected music Gaye wrote, co-wrote and performed throughout his career. From inception to execution, McKinley's sensitivity to Gaye's message and her rich, warm sound combine to pull this project far, far away from the ordinary - creating a genre that just fits between Jazz, Smooth Jazz and R & B - soulful and creative.
From her 2004 self-released album “BARING THE SOUL" - this new album exhibits Cassandre's continuing exploration of Nu-Jazz and Soul focusing on additional material by this great soul icon.
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Cassandre McKinley: Baring The Soul The Music of Marvin Gaye
by Michael P. Gladstone
I rather like this jazz-inspired tribute to the music of the legendary Motown singer and songwriter Marvin Gaye. I can't think of anyone who has prepared an entire album to celebrate his work in this genre. Even Kevin Mahogony's Pride and Joy (2003) was a Motown album with only the title tune reflecting Gaye's songbook. McKinley's voice features an odd mixture of jazz phrasing on the ballads and a more urgent R&B tinge on the more up-tempo numbers, leaving me ...
read moreCassandre McKinley: Baring the Soul: The Music of Marvin Gaye
by Bridget A. Arnwine
On Baring the Soul: The Music of Marvin Gaye, Cassandre McKinley sings some of the late soul legend's greatest and most celebrated songs. Performing such classics as Let's Get It On, Your Precious Love, (which features a duet with vocalist John Pagano), Trouble Man, Pride and Joy, and I Want You, Cassandre McKinley takes on the task of reinventing the music that helped propel Marvin Gaye to greatness. The songs selected for this recording are about hardship, pain, lust, and ...
read moreCassandre McKinley: Stay the Night
by Mathew Bahl
Stay the Night is the young, Boston-based vocalist Cassandre McKinley’s second CD. Although far from perfect, there is enough talent and solid judgment on display to suggest that it will not be her last. Ms. McKinley’s chief asset is a gorgeous voice that immediately grabs the listener’s attention. Hers is a bright, nicely textured, well pitched instrument not unlike the young Kay Starr’s voice but with less vibrato and no country music influences. Ms. McKinely also has crystal clear diction, ...
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