Meryl Romer

Artist Information

Biography

"So Sure" picked as #1 jazz album for 2009 on Jazztimes.com by reviewer, Susan Frances

Meryl Romer

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www.merylromer.com

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(On Meryl Romer’s Metropolitan Room engagement, NY Tour, Fall ‘09):
It's been a long time since I've heard such a luscious and soulful performance. Meryl took the house by storm! ~ Joe Franklin, Bloomberg Radio


Friday, 16th January 2009
"Singing gives me a chance to open to and play with aspects of life that are an expansion of my daily landscape. The songs offer me an opportunity to explore a palette of characters, emotions, stories, rhythms and moods. It is through my voice that I experience the shapes, shadows and subtlety of the movements that allow me to expand my world into uncharted territories. The songs are my avenue to give voice to the yearnings of my heart and soul."Meryl Romer

Meryl's first recorded outing as a jazz contralto, on So Sure, is at once adventurous and articulate, playful yet sophisticated. Her songs allow the listener to experience the great jazz standards through Meryl's eyes. The original pieces on "So Sure" display an honesty only life can teach and her Dylan interpretation is a truly wonderful surprise.

So Sure includes three original pieces, penned for her by songwriter/producer, Casey Collins and composer Eric Moon. "I've Waited Long Enough", "Right on Time", and "So Sure" tell of Meryl's story of having waited long enough to follow and explore her singing passion. "I've often said that I've been singing these songs my whole life....I just never opened my mouth. I began whispering lyrics when I was 11 years old and gathered the courage to begin to sing forty years later."

Meryl covers standards ranging from Toots Thielemans to Rodgers and Hart and newer selections by Cassandra Wilson and Bob Dylan. Her choice of songs reflect her feelings and fantasies about relationships, play, commitment and determination.

Meryl's music collaborators on So Sure are inspired and masterful musicians who have created pulsing, modern jazz arrangements that support Meryl as she breathes loves and life into the tunes. Meryl joined with pianist/arranger Erik Deutsch; guitarist/arranger Bill Kopper; bass player Jonti Siman; drummer Marc Dalio; tenor saxophonist/flutist Robert Kyle; and drummer Brian McRae (track 1) to record So Sure.

Meryl's recent tour dates include Boulder, Denver, Albuquerque and New York City. As a result of her highly successful 2009 debut at the Metropolitan Room, NYC, she was invited back to that venue in April 2010. That East Coast Tour will also include a date at Billie's Black in Harlem. More dates to be added -- keep an eye on Meryl's calendar.

"Meryl Romer embodies the current renaissance of the romantic singers of the 40's. Her sound recalls the voluptuous shape of Sarah Vaughan, the ease and elegance of Ella Fitzgerald and a heart-shuddering vibrato reminiscent of Judy Garland. She sings with a tenderness of heart blown through the essence of maturity. When Meryl wraps her voice around the lyrical standards of jazz, there is an innuendo of innocence that yields a most sophisticated lady." - Vocalist/Producer, Casey Collins

Instrumentation

"So Sure" CD band members include: Meryl Romer, vocals; Erik Deutsch, piano; Bill Kopper, guitar; Jonti Siman, bass; Marc Dalio, drums; Robert Kyle, tenor sax/flute

Discography

"So Sure" is a 12 track jazz CD released in April 2009.
There are 6 you tubes on my website: www.merylromer.com

Links

• JazzTimes.com favorite picks for 2009
• website

Audio

• I've Waited Long Enough
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• Lady is a Tramp
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• But Beautiful
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• Solomon Sang
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• You're A Big Boy Now (aka You're A Big Girl Now)
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• Close Your Eyes
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• This Is Always
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• Big Spender
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• Boulevard of Broken Dreams
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• Bluesette
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• Right On Time
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• So Sure
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• I've Waited Long Enough
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• I've Waited Long Enough
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Lyrics

• Right on Time

Video

Photo Gallery

Press

• jazzreview.com [+ Show ]
  

  Featured Artist: Meryl Romer CD Title: So Sure Year: 2009 Record Label: Lady Pearl Mu...Featured Artist: Meryl Romer
  
  
  CD Title: So Sure
  
  Year: 2009
  
  Record Label: Lady Pearl Music
  
  Style: Straight-Ahead / Classic
  
  Musicians:
  Meryl Romer - vocals, Erik Deutsch - piano/organ/glockenspiel/accordion, Bill Kopper - guitar, Jonti Siman - bass, Marc Dalio - drums, Robert Kyle - tenor saxophone/flute, and Brian McRae - drums on “I’ve Waited Long Enough”
  
  
  
  Review:
  Jazz vocalist Meryl Romer comes alight with a Billy Holiday radiance and a Dinah Washington caressive vocalese on her first recorded outing So Sure from the Lady Pearl Music label. Smooth romantic currents are slate with soul jazz lacing in these tracks. The album consists of three original pieces penned by Romer’s writer and producer Casey Collins and composer Eric Moon, in addition to nine standards. Romer handles the vocal melodies with finesse making these songs come to life. Whether she sings them in a café setting, a concert hall or in the privacy of a bedroom, they resonate with soul wrapped snugly in her sultry voicing. She sings these tunes as if they came out of her own autobiography, shading them with exquisite nuances and memorable moments of insight into the emotions behind the words.
  
  You can come in at any point on the album and feel like this brew is something special. The New Orleans saloon-styled piano swells sowed along “I’ve Waited Long Enough” kick up its heels in bop-clad grooves and Romer’s earthy-toned vocals. The smoky organ rolls slinking along “Lady Is A Tramp” are crimped by saxophone twirls and jumping piano trills while Romer’s vocals act as the flint that lights the dance fuses. The mellow mood of “But Beautiful” feels introspective with words that spark one’s imagination, “And I’m thinking / If you were mine, I’d never let you go / And that would be but beautiful / I know.” The album juts forward with the lounging smooth jazz sandbars of “Solomon Sang” and the soothing riffs of “You’re A Big Boy Now.” These are the kind of tunes that let you close your eyes as they wash you away in its alluring entails.
  
  Romer steps into soft boogaloo jazz vaunts along “Close Your Eyes” with locks of razz-a-ma-tazz in the piano keys. The gentle sconces surfing along “This Is Always” have the seductive glow of a lover’s lair with the nutrients of manna for the soul, while the burlesque curves of “Big Spender” have a coquettish flare shellac in silky tones. The whispery rumba mists of “Boulevard Of Broken Dreams” are luxuriating, and then plunge into beautifully latticed saxophone swirls opening “Bluesette.” The bluesy ragtime grooves of “Right On Time” are covered in jiggly piano keys and vocals that embrace the free spirits of the melody, before closing out the album with a stream of lamenting piano keys that form thin shadows coasting along the title track.
  
  Romer’s songs exude a deep sense of pride and heart for jazz music. The song selection for So Sure showcases Romer’s vast palette to utter perfection. Her vocal style brings out these song’s beauty and listening pleasure. Let’s face it, Meryl Romer could sing MC Hammer’s “Can’t Touch This” and make it sound lacy and frilly and absolutely exquisite. She has that kind of touch. She is one of a kind.
  
  
  
  Tracks:
  I’ve Waited Long Enough, Lady Is A Tramp, But Beautiful, Solomon Sang, You’re A Big Boy Now, Close Your Eyes, This Is Always, Big Spender, Boulevard Of Broken Dreams, Bluesette, Right On Time, So Sure
  
  
  
  Artist's Website: http://www.merylromer.com
  
  Listen or Buy: www.cdbaby.com/cd/merylromer
  
  Reviewed by: Susan Frances
  
  

• In-Tune International [+ Show ]
  

  IN-TUNE INTERNATIONAL/SINGER'S SINGERS "Meryl slyly caresses her 12 song programme with remarkable ...IN-TUNE INTERNATIONAL/SINGER'S SINGERS
  "Meryl slyly caresses her 12 song programme with remarkable results. On "The Lady Is A Tramp" (Rodgers/Hart) she deliciously swings with complete confidence. It's too bad that this standard is seldom sung by a female. "But Beautiful" (Burke/VanHeusen) pleasurably goes on for five minutes and with guitarist Bill Kopper it's definitely on the right track. "Close Your Eyes" (Petkere) is swung and again features her exceptional guitarist Bill Kopper. Meryl is so comfortable here that she midway scats in perfect pitch. "This Is Always" (Gordon/Warren) is most special. Treated as a slow, really slow, dark aria it's exceptionally spellbinding.
  Another highlight is Meryl's version of "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" (Dubin/Warren). More folks should consider singing this undated standard. Ms. Romer is sure-footed and and vocally perfect. The CD title is most accurate: Meryl is surely someone whose great future appears most certain." Reviewed by Dan Singer
  

• gossipcentral.com [+ Show ]
  

  Meryl Romer is So Sure at Iridium The photo on her debut CD “So Sure” shows Meryl Romer with a k...Meryl Romer is So Sure at Iridium
  
  The photo on her debut CD “So Sure” shows Meryl Romer with a knowing, come hither look, deep cleavage, saying she’s got the goods. As a vocalist, she’s new but her sound rooted in jazz traditions makes you think, where has she been? But that is the story of her music. In three original songs, by writer/producer Casey Collins and composer Eric Moon, “I’ve Waited Long Enough,” “Right on Time,” and her signature “So Sure,” Romer recounts a personal saga that explains the right turn she took somewhere in her ripe ‘50’s to pursue the passion for music that was lurking within her since childhood. Covering Sinatra-famed standards like “Big Spender” or “Lady is a Tramp,” or Cassandra Wilson’s “Solomon Sang” and Toots Thielemans’ “Bluesette,” Romer suggests her jazzy influences. With “You’re a Big Boy Now” from Dylan’s “Blood on the Tracks,” she spills into rock with a new arrangement. Backed by a first-rate band: Erik Deutsch on piano, Bill Kopper on guitar, Jonti Siman on bass, Marc Dallo on drums and Mike McGuinness on tenor sax, Romer knows how to put on a great show. As the packed room at Iridium could hear last week, any time might have been “right on time,” and this time is more than good.
  
  
  Regina Weinreich
  

• cabaret exchange [+ Show ]
  

  Live Review: http://www.cabaretexchange.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=809&Itemid=76 ...Live Review: http://www.cabaretexchange.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=809&Itemid=76
  
  Written by Lucy Galliher
  JAZZ NOTES FOR CABARET EXCHANGE
  
  Meryl Romer CD Release Party at Iridium. Singer Meryl Romer came to the Big Apple from Boulder, Colorado, to celebrate her new CD, So Sure at the Iridium on July 8, 2009. She brought a crowd of family and friends to hear her, and a band of Colorado-based musicians: Eric Deutsch on piano, Bill Kopper on guitar, Mike McGinnis on tenor sax and flute, Jonti Siman on bass and Marc Dalio on drums. Guitarist Bill Kopper arranged most of the music.
  
  Although this is Meryl’s debut CD, and her first foray into the professional music world, she is not a youngster. Many years of singing have helped her obtain an individual style with a unique, relaxed tone. The original “I’ve Waited Long Enough,” was a good opener for altoist Romer. Presented as an old-fashioned honky-tonk, it set the mood of the evening. Kopper’s guitar solo brought more modern elements to the tune, and he continued to show his expertise throughout the set.
  Several of the songs were standards: “The Lady is a Tramp,” done in an unusual way with a shuffle groove initiated by Kopper; the ballads “But Beautiful” (one of my favorite tunes) and “This is Always” – Meryl sang the verse, delving into the tune with heartfelt gestures. Toots Thielemans’ “Bluesette,” was also a good vehicle for Meryl, where she phrased the swing section freely, scatting a bit, and coming back after the solos with a final chorus that exhibited a gravelly tone of her voice.
  “Solomon Sang,” a Cassandra Wilson tune arranged by Kopper, was very tastefully done. Mike McGinnis (who played tenor sax for most of the set) was featured on flute during this straight-8th note groove. I felt the band was most comfortable on this style of music.
  After a few more songs in different styles (a Bob Dylan tune in a country-western fashion, “Close Your Eyes” – medium swing with a cool jazzy solo on tenor, and “Right on Time” – an original, a 12-bar blues about her early days in Brooklyn), they ended with the title cut of the CD, “So Sure.” This introspective piece was sung with only Eric Deutsch’s piano for accompaniment. Good luck to Meryl Romer in the future!
  
  
  Jim Eigo Jazz Promo Services T: 845-986-1677 E-Mail: jazzpromo@earthlink.net
  Jazz Promo East: Lorraine Tucci Sound newsoundideas@earthlink.net
  
  

• jazz weekly.com [+ Show ]
  

  Here´s a lady that comes out of Colorado, middle aged, with nothing to prove, and puts out a wallop ...Here´s a lady that comes out of Colorado, middle aged, with nothing to prove, and puts out a wallop of a rookie cd. Meryl Romer, Brooklyn-bred and Boulder-based, delivers a semi-autobiographical disc that has taken a lifetime to produce. Like the winner in "Slumdog Millionaire," she uses her life experiences to answer all the right questions in this collection of standards of self-penned tunes. She has a world weathered look, demeanor and tone that brings to mind the character Belle in Gone With The Wind: seen it all, and wiser with all of the experiences.
  
  Her savvy voice is well framed by the cooking little team of Erik Deutsch/keyboards, Bill Kopper/g, Marc Dalio/dr, Jonit Siman/b and Robert Kyle/tenor/flute. She is adept at giving clever reinterpretations to songs like "Lady Is a Tramp," by giving it a bluesy vamp. She sounds like the vamp on those old cigar commercials (am I dating myself?) on a Gilda-esque "Big Spender" a campfire storyteller on Cassandra Wilson´s "Solomon Song" and a "last go round" at the local watering hole on "I´ve Waited Long Enough." The band can blues it, snap it and bop it with the best of them. This lady is a Rocky Mountain High!
  

• jazz improv, new york [+ Show ]
  

  "Waiting until her 50's to launch a singing career, Meryl Romer enters the game with a lived-in voic..."Waiting until her 50's to launch a singing career, Meryl Romer enters the game with a lived-in voice that fits comfortably into the standards featured on this debut effort. Her voice casts off regret-laden lyrics of longing with a been-down-that-road-before nonchalance that can't quite rid itself of the pain-the singer simply projects a confidence that she'll get through this latest punch to the gut. Her reworking of the Bob Dylan nugget "You're a Big Girl Now" is likewise turned into a nice, trail-thrice-taken tune. But even with this capable handling of the American Songbook, the Casey Collins/Eric Moon originals ("I've Waited Long Enough," "Right on Time," "So Sure") are the true treats on the record, providing tailor-made vehicles for Romer's artistic vision.
  Written by Matt Marshall, Jazz Improv NY May 2009
  
  

• jazz prospecting on the web [+ Show ]
  

  Meryl Romer: So Sure (2008 [2009], Lady Pearl Music): Singer, based in Boulder, CO; b. 1951, started...Meryl Romer: So Sure (2008 [2009], Lady Pearl Music): Singer, based in Boulder, CO; b. 1951, started her jazz career in 2002, and dedicates this album "to all those who have waited long enough." Took it seriously when she started, studying with Casey Collins (producer here, and co-author with Eric Moon of three originals) and Erik Deutsch (pianist here, arranger), and sought out further pointers from Sheila Jordan and Jay Clayton. Attractive voice, best on songs with a little wit like "Lady Is a Tramp" and "Big Spender," and her "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" is touching. Band fits well. Hard not to root for her. B+(**)

• o's place jazz newsletter [+ Show ]
  

  This is an unusual journey featuring a girl who at eleven was fascinated my music. She was always hu...This is an unusual journey featuring a girl who at eleven was fascinated my music. She was always humming melodies, whispering lyrics and then over four decades later gathered the confidence to stand behind a microphone in a recording studio. That girl is now the mature Meryl Romer. She's still young at heart making her professional debut at 51. The program is a collection of popular standards. Romer shines on "But Beautiful", gives us a taste of country on "You're A Big Boy Now", and touches the romantic blues of "Boulevard of Broken Dreams". She proves that it is never too late to follow your dreams."
  D. Oscar Groomes, O's Place Jazz Newsletter

• midwes record.com [+ Show ]
  

  "A sassy, sexy jazz vocal outing with some real depth... fun stuff that's really going to take you b..."A sassy, sexy jazz vocal outing with some real depth... fun stuff that's really going to take you by surprise." - Chris Spector, Editor and Publisher, midwestrecord.com
  

• allaboutjazz.com [+ Show ]
  

  Meryl Romer Sounds So Sure On New Release Press Release by: Keith 'MuzikMan' Hannaleck ...Meryl Romer Sounds So Sure On New Release
  
  Press Release by: Keith 'MuzikMan' Hannaleck
  
  
  
  New York, New York-February 23, 2009-For Meryl Romer being sure of her abilities as a vocalist comes as second nature and on her debut release So Sure. The singer embodies that driving spirit and exudes confidence at every twist and turn on all 12 tracks. The CD will be released on Lady Pearl Music April 4, 2009.
  
  As comparisons to legends such as Sarah Vaughn and Ella Fitzgerald are lavished upon her Ms. Romer takes it all in stride and delivers a career defining performance on So Sure.
  
  After years of study and training to bring forth her marvelous vocals, the Boulder, Colorado based Ms. Romer will be visiting the heart of jazz in New York City to promote So Sure.
  
  Meryl states: “The feelings these songs elicit from me conjure shapes and sounds that tell stories that resonate with my own. Songs are like trying on tailored dresses. Some are like jeweled gowns which tell my story and others allow me to embody imagined, dreamt of characters.”
  
  Meryl Romer has completed her rites of passage into the jazz world by covering standards like “Lady Is A Tramp”, “Big Spender”, “Boulevard of Broken Dreams”, as well as a beautiful interpretation of Bob Dylan’s “You’re A Big Boy (Girl) Now”. Each composition is carefully handled with love and emotion, bringing you back to the time when they where first recorded. By accomplishing that difficult task, Meryl wins over your heart quickly with these timeless renditions of classic songs from the American Songbook and consequently So Sure quickly becomes a frequent resident in your stereo. Along with the standards, Meryl offers up three originals to make sure the listener understands the long wait and the road that helped her reach the ultimate goal of bringing her voice into your living room.
  
  Meryl's musical collaborators, Erik Deutsch, Bill Kopper, Jonti Siman, Marc Dalio, Brian McRae and Robert Kyle, brought an enthused and polished sensitivity throughout the recording, giving outstanding support as she brings life and devotion to every tune with her moving vocal style.
  
  Visit Meryl Romer’s website for performance updates, biographical information, media, and more.
  
  

Setlist

Set lists will include original songs, jazz standards, some with original arrangements, and some classic pop tunes. Sets can be one to three in an evening, each set lasting 40 - 50 minutes. Repertoire includes 100 songs at present.

Basic Requirements

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