Offering an abridged version of her 2003 Safe Return concert, recorded live at Boston's Berklee Performance Center, Jane Olivor enchanted a capacity crowd of devotees at Boston's more intimate Scullers Jazz Club, dialing back her trademark rich belt to better suit the room. While the lack of power on such signature songs as "Carousel of Love" and "Stay the Night" drained the excitement right out of them, her still attractive lilting voice, sometimes brought to a whisper, drew us in unexpectedly, creating wonderful pin-drop moments on such sweet ballads as You and some welcome new material as "Pardon Me, Haven't We Met." She showcased her sophisticated syncopation in "I Got The Sun In the Mornin'," then used her perfect sense of pitch to deftly negotiate the perilous intervals of Michel Legrand's "The Summer Knows," an emotional highlight of the show. Her tavern songs "Chanson" and "Merry-Go-Round", her story songs "Crowded Island" and "Run For The Roses", and her comfortable Brooklynese patter demonstrate this modern-day chanteuse is a cabaret natural.

John Amodeo
Cabaret Scenes
March 24, 2007
www.cabaretscenes.org