Eileen Howard is having a love affair…..with New York City! The vocalist/songwriter, who has called many places her home in her lifetime, moved to NYC in 2012 and promptly fell in love with her new hometown and her life in it. Howard came to New York from the Midwest where her singing career blossomed by singing at various blues and jazz festivals and in an assortment of clubs and concerts. She has garnered a host of favorable reviews for her live performances and for her past four albums. In this, her fifth CD, she has chosen to celebrate her feelings with a collection of eleven songs – seven of which are familiar. The rest are her own original compositions (“Home Is You”, “Love Can Change”, “Absent Without Leave” and “In Tune”). The familiar material includes some of the best known ‘about New York City’ songs – Rodgers and Hart’s “Manhattan”, “Sunday In New York” and Kander and Ebb’s iconic “New York, New York”. Howard is also responsible for the arrangements of her originals and for the refreshing Latinized treatment of the aforementioned “New York, New York”. She is accompanied here by a strong rhythm section comprised of Michael Raye on keyboard, guitarist Nat Janoff, bassist Eddy Khaimovich and drummer Darrell Smith; enhanced with contributions by Daniel Bennett on sax and flute and trumpeter Matthew Owens on several of the tracks. With this latest offering, Eileen Howard continues to reach her listening audience with her storytelling ability by singing from the heart with her powerful, melodious voice. Enjoy! Marcia Hillman, Jazz Journalist