Midnight Mood

SSC1721 2025-03-14

Track List

Prelude to a Kiss - 4:32
The Best Thing for You - 3:24
Beaucoup Kisses - 2:17
This Happy Madness - 3:41
Midnight Mood - 3:25
A Ship Without a Sail - 3:27
What's New - 4:27
You Keep Coming Back Like A Song - 4:39
The Two Lonely People - 3:25
Whenever Winds Blow - 3:28

Musicians

Meredith d'Ambrosio - voice
Frederic Loiseau - guitar
Paul McWilliams - piano

A fabulous chanteuse and pianist, Meredith d’Ambrosio has captured the ears of generations of interpreters of the jazz canon. A true singer’s singer. Her craft has led to a handful of rewarding collaborations over the years, including a new partnership with French guitarist Frédéric Loiseau, captured on their new recording, Midnight Mood.

The New England based d’Ambrosio has remained quiet but active for the past twenty years, focusing primarily on her painting. After decades of regular gigging and recording, the vocalist has remained engaged but discerning in her projects.

A generation removed from d’Ambrosio, Loiseau has had a rewarding career as a guitarist in France. Studies with guitar greats Joe Pass and Joe Diorio prepared Loiseau well for early performances with Dave Liebman and John Abercrombie. For many years, he has been an educator at the Centre des Musiques Didier Lockwood and a bandleader, including his Pee Bee ensemble.

Loiseau has been attracted by vocalists and was able to work with a number of greats, including Bob Dorough and Sheila Jordan. It wasn’t long before he was caught by the artistry of d’Ambrosio, eventually writing a piece in dedication to the vocalist entitled “Song for Meredith.”

In 2023, Loiseau reached out to Sunnyside Records owner and founder François Zalacain in an effort to pursue a collaboration with d’Ambrosio. Having heard the proposal, d’Ambrosio was excited at the opportunity to record her vocals and piano along with Loiseau’s guitar. D’Ambrosio was so taken with Loiseau’s tune that she wrote lyrics inspired by her relationship with her current partner, renaming the tune “Beaucoup Kisses.”

Unfortunately, when it was nearly time to record, d’Ambrosio found herself not able to attempt the piano parts. Instead, she enlisted Paul McWilliams to handle the keyboard duties. Thus, the trio of d’Ambrosio, Loiseau and McWilliams recorded at the vocalist’s Duxbury, Massachusetts home on April 9 and 10, 2024.