Singer Marilyn Keller is so diverse and talented that her vocal stylings defy easy description. The jazz pianist and composer Darrell Grant has said, “When you hear Marilyn the first thing you notice is that beautiful, powerful, sweet voice. But this woman also has a way of reaching right down to the soul of songs and touching them with magic. … Whether you love gospel, soul, blues, jazz, or music by any other name, I know you will be moved by this woman's magical voice, by her honesty, and depth of feeling.” In this new songbook release, Marilyn brings her sparkle and soul to six original tunes by Ellen Vanderslice, an award-winning composer and lyricist who lives, works, plays music and wears hats in Portland, Oregon. Marilyn’s warm, robust voice is well-supported here by outstanding performances from a star-studded list of Portland jazz masters: Janice Scroggins, TALL JAZZ, Lee Wuthenow, Dan Donahue, Kevin Deitz, Ron Steen, David Evans, George Mitchell, Dan Balmer, Phil Baker, and Reinhardt Melz. Based in Portland, Oregon, Marilyn Keller has built a career that takes her worldwide as a featured artist for concerts, festivals, nightclubs and recording work in Denmark, Sweden, Norway, the Netherlands, Spain, Australia and the United Kingdom. Her rich, flexible voice can be heard on numerous recordings, movie sound tracks, commercials, documentary narratives and demos. Marilyn's formative jazz training was as a member of the Mt. Hood Community College Vocal Jazz Ensemble and as the vocalist fronting the award-winning MHCC Jazz Lab Band. In 1997, she joined the noted Black Swan Classic Jazz Band, quickly establishing a loyal following in the Dixieland and Ragtime scene. Currently, Marilyn is featured every Sunday at the Jazz Worship Service at Portland’s Augustana Lutheran Church, and her loyal followers look forward to hearing her frequently at restaurants, clubs, festivals and holiday events throughout the Pacific Northwest. Below is a complete track list with details and some notes about the songs and recordings on this songbook release. All the tracks were recorded with tremendous enthusiasm at Dead Aunt Thelma’s Studio in Portland, Oregon, with the unflappable Mike Moore as the recording engineer on every track except “Puppy Dog Blues” (which features Dean Baskerville both as the recording engineer and also as the deep vocal effect). While most of these tracks were originally featured on earlier CDs, the brand new recording of Ellen’s new gospel song “Rejoice and Be Glad,” with piano accompaniment by Janice Scroggins, is getting its first airing on this release. TRACK 1 Rejoice and Be Glad (4:24) ©2013; words by Ellen Vanderslice (adapted from Psalm 118); music by Ellen Vanderslice and Mike Horsfall Recorded: February 13, 2013 Featuring: Janice Scroggins, piano; Marilyn Keller, vocal Ellen’s notes: “This is first gospel song I’ve written, and from the moment I imagined it I heard Marilyn’s voice singing it. The song began taking shape in 2008, after I’d read a sermon on gratitude by Unitarian Universalist minister Galen Guengerich that included this reference to Psalm 118: ‘This is the day we are given, let us rejoice and be glad in it.’ For four years I had the beginning and end of a song, without the necessary substance of the middle. At last, in January, 2013, I buckled down and let the Psalm’s images “swarm like bees” around me. Once the whole song was drafted, Mike Horsfall added deft touches to the chord changes. When Marilyn and I talked over the idea of recording it, we both knew right away we wanted Janice Scroggins to accompany her. The results exceed my hopes and dreams, and I hope you will enjoy it, too.” TRACK 2 Nothin’ But Time (3:09) ©1998; words and music by Ellen Vanderslice Recorded: June 7, 1999 Featuring: TALL JAZZ (Mike Horsfall, piano; Dan Presley, bass; Kurt Deutscher, drums); Lee Wuthenow, tenor sax; Marilyn Keller, vocal. Ellen’s notes: “This song was initially inspired by waiting for a bus. It was a Sunday, the #77 only ran once an hour, and I had just missed one. I sat down on the curb and said to myself, ‘I’ve got nothin’ but time,’ and the whole idea grew from there. The call and response aspect was influenced by ‘Don’t Get Around Much Anymore,’ since I had recently been practicing the trombone part for a small band performance.” TRACK 3 If I Never See You Again (2:47) ©1998; words by Ellen Vanderslice and Scott Parker; music by Ellen Vanderslice Recorded: June 7, 1999 Featuring: TALL JAZZ (Mike Horsfall, piano; Dan Presley, bass; Kurt Deutscher, drums); Lee Wuthenow, tenor sax; Marilyn Keller, vocal. Ellen’s notes: “When I wrote this song, I had in mind a rather lugubrious country feel, but Marilyn and Lee and TALL JAZZ give it a rocking performance that brings out a feistier side of the protagonist. This song took first place in the Jazz and R&B category in the 1999 Portland Songwriters Association song contest – the first time I won a songwriting award.” TRACK 4 Souvenirs (4:38) ©1998; words by Ellen Vanderslice; music by Ellen Vanderslice and Mike Horsfall Recorded: June 7, 1999 Featuring: TALL JAZZ (Mike Horsfall, piano; Dan Presley, bass; Kurt Deutscher, drums); Lee Wuthenow, tenor sax; Marilyn Keller, vocal. Ellen’s notes: “This song is from a period when I was searching for inspiration in such everyday matters as doing the laundry, and if you listen closely you’ll hear a little lament for ‘the sock that lost its mate.’” TRACK 5 Off the Deep End (6:05) Recorded: August 11, 2001 ©2001; words and music by Ellen Vanderslice Featuring: Dan Donahue, piano; Kevin Deitz, bass; Ron Steen, drums; David Evans, saxophone; Marilyn Keller, vocal. Ellen’s notes: “I purely love Dan Donahue’s opening notes, which set the tone for the whole song, and Marilyn does a fantastic job. With Kevin Deitz on the electric bass, Ron Steen on drums, and an exquisite solo from David Evans, this is a fine collaboration of consummate professionals, and the result is a rendition that fully realizes the soul of this song.” TRACK 6 Puppy Dog Blues (4:29) ©2002; words by Ellen Vanderslice and Michele Farrell; music by Ellen Vanderslice Recorded: August 28, 2002 Featuring: George Mitchell, piano; Dan Balmer, guitar; Phil Baker, bass; Reinhardt Melz, drums; Marilyn Keller, vocal. (Dean Baskerville, vocal effect.) Ellen’s notes: “Michele Farrell and I were having a drink at the Benson Lobby Court and something I said gave her the idea for ‘Puppy Dog Blues.’ We sketched out the main points on a napkin, and I went home and knocked off the lyrics the next day. In the studio it was such a treat to listen to fabulous jazz players like George Mitchell and Dan Balmer tackle a ‘down and dirty’ blues, with Phil Baker and Reinhardt Melz to keep them true. It was Michele’s idea to add the deep voice of the big dog.”