Recorded live at the midtown Manhattan hotel where she long held court,
Julie Wilson at the St. Regis captures the singer in her natural environment, perfectly evoking the smoky, after-hours sophistication of the postwar cabaret circuit. Paired here with the
Marshall Grant Trio,
Wilson clearly relishes the live setting: the songs forgo subtlety and restraint in favor of crowd-pleasing theatrics, shifting easily from torch song melancholy to tongue in cheek vamps.
Wilson's sly, husky vocals have never sounded better than on songs like "Most Gentlemen Don't Like Love," "Married I Can Always Get," and "I Refuse to Rock and Roll." ~ Jason Ankeny