*** Monica Hatch

IF YOU NEVER COME TO ME

(Brownstone)

Monica Hatch sings with cool authority on this pleasing debut of sambas, Rodgers & Hart gems, bebop scats, well-trodden ballads, and an Irish evergreen. You can hear her easy mastery of both jazz and classical technique. There's Ella Fitzgerald's candid innocence, Carmen McRae's sangfroid, and hints of Hatch's teacher, soprano Eleanor Steber, in matters of superb diction and legato phrasing. A collaborative soul, Hatch embraces many of Boston's best within her debut. Dual scatting with baritone Paul Broadnax on the snappy "Anthropology" is a highlight; he also plays fine piano and writes the low-key but spot-on non-samba arrangements. Mike Turk's harmonica keens telling solos on "Gentle Rain" and the capper of the date, a whimsically gentle "Danny Boy."

-- Fred Bouchard