Eva Cassidy: Jazzed — A Voice Reborn in Crystal-Clear Jazz
Swing and Sway with Cassidy.
Eva Cassidy left us 30 years ago this November, and although she was only able to release relatively few albums before her passing, those she did release cemented her (in my mind, at least, and perhaps in the minds of her legions of fans the world over) as one of the greatest singers, both in tone and style, ever to grace a record.
I can think of only a small handful, two or three maybe, of vocalists who can move me to my very core, evoking an emotional response with merely a voice and singing style the way Eva Cassidy does.
So I think it only fitting that, on the 30th anniversary of her passing, Blix Street Records is releasing a new album of her songs, remixed and reimagined for the world as a jazz album, on November 13, 2026.
While some of the songs on the new album, affectionately named Jazzed, were originally sung in a jazz style, they, along with the others here, have been remixed and reimagined to allow us the privilege, if you will, of hearing these songs performed by her in a way she might herself have done had she not succumbed to melanoma at age 33.
What is so wonderful about modern 21st-century technology is that an album like this can be made.
This recording was done in such a way that Eva's beautiful, dynamic, sultry voice is not overshadowed by the new arrangements. Instead, her vocal is front and center, and the arrangements, be they band or orchestra, complement her and make it seem as though they were all in the same room or studio together at the same time. Baccarat-clear and pristine, as if recorded yesterday.
Now, I always felt that Eva's records were clear, wonderful, and well recorded, especially her Live at Blues Alley record. But here, using audio restoration technology that was able to isolate her vocal tracks from her previous recordings, her voice has been enhanced and revealed before me with a level of clarity and depth that is jaw-dropping to hear. If it wasn't, as I thought it was before, it is now—ethereal!
I have not heard a concept album like this done so well since Al Green's Give Me More Love: The Orchestral Greatest Hits album, released a few years ago.
Right out of the gate, the album opens with "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)," an infectious rendition that had my feet tapping and fingers snapping instantly. It was as if she and the band were right there in the room with me. The arrangement is wonderful, and it sounds as though it was made for her vocal.
And as if the band and orchestra arrangements weren't seamless enough, the song "Blue Skies" is a duet with Max Cooper III. Eva's vocals were recorded live in 1996 and Max's part in a studio in 2025—and you would never know it to listen to it!
What I enjoyed so much about this album is that some of my favorite Eva songs—"Honeysuckle Rose," "Cheek to Cheek," "At Last," and "Ain't No Sunshine," songs that I consistently listen to—are included here, and I have to say, these renditions give me a whole other way to enjoy them!
I mean, I would never have thought I would hear a better rendition of "At Last" than Etta James' version, but oh yes, with the band's arrangement here, there's such a feeling of smoky sultriness that it just becomes Eva's song for good from now on, for me.
"Cheek to Cheek" is big-band jazz as it should be played and sung, and "Ain't No Sunshine," with the way the horns and orchestra back her, is just so soulfully jazzy (I don't know if that is actually a thing, but I'm sticking with it!). She outdoes Bill Withers on his own song. It's just that good, and the perfect song to end this album with.
Summing it all up, what can possibly be said about Eva Cassidy that hasn't been said or felt by her fans, fellow musicians, and writers around the world already?
Taken from us too soon, here is another chance to hear her sing the songs we all know in a new way that is both fresh and invigorating. Every one a gem, done with a polished cohesiveness that highlights her voice in a whole new, crystal-clear, jazzy way!
Highly recommended.
Track Listing
- It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)
- Blue Skies
- Summertime
- At Last
- Honeysuckle Rose
- Blues in the Night
- Still Not Ready
- You've Changed
- Cheek to Cheek
- Ain't No Sunshine