Mike Gibbs/Norma Winstone

Here’s a Song for You Fuzzy Moon ****

Distinguished British arranger Mike Gibbs has been coaxing his lush harmonies out of orchestras and big bands for five decades now, but he has seldom had such promising material to work with: Hamburg's highly polished NDR Big Band, vocalist Norma Winstone, and a treasury of songs that range from solid gold standards by Porter, Gershwin and Ellington to modern nuggets by Joni Mitchell, Tom Waits and Nick Drake. One of many instrumental high points is an homage to Kenny Wheeler (with whom Gibbs bears some comparison as an arranger), with a gorgeously orchestrated transcription of the great trumpeter's solo on Gibbs's own tune, Some Shadows. But in the end, this record belongs to Winstone. Now 70, the singer stands alone amongst contemporary jazz vocalists, always a servant to the song and technically flawless, but with a genuine vulnerability that brings the material to life. See fuzzymoonrecords.co.uk.