soft winds and roses Diana Panton

• 1 Your Song 04:34
• 2 (They Long to Be) Close to You 03:48
• 3 Secret Heart 03:18
• 4 Sweet Happy Life 03:54
• 5 A Wish (Valentine) 03:46
• 6 How Deep Is Your Love 03:43
• 7 Pussywillows Cat-Tails 03:55
• 8 Here, There And Everywhere 03:37
• 9 You and I (Voce E Eu) 03:58
• 10 And I Love You So 05:13
• 11 Until It's Time For You To Go 05:12
• 12 Hey, That's No Way To Say Goodbye 04:19
• 13 Snow 02:47
• 14 Both Sides Now 05:39
• Total Runtime 57:43

Info for soft winds and roses

The multiple JUNO Award nominee Diana Panton is back with her new album “Soft Winds and Roses“.

Diana Panton is the most beautiful Canadian voice you may not know about. The prolific Hamilton-born artist remains far less visible than eminent colleagues and compatriots (like Jill Barber, for example). At least that’s my impression. What stands out about the albums by this discreet Ontarian (this is her eleventh for the Western market, and fifteenth if you add the albums released solely in Asia, where she is very popular) is the exquisite gentleness and tenderness that emanate from this light soprano voice, which is totally right, both musically and emotionally. The voice is reminiscent of Stacey Kent and Blossom Dearie. Since her first album, …yesterday perhaps, released in 2005, Diana has never strayed from her editorial line: a caressing jazz pop, led with finesse and elegance by regular partners (Reg Schwager on guitar, Don Thompson on keyboards and double bass), and impeccable phrasing that conveys simple, authentic emotions, without effusion. An interiority revealed with honesty and modesty.

"Diana Panton sings purely, delicately and precisely on Soft Winds and Roses, coaxing the listener to get settled, be still, and lean into the beauty of the music, thereby forgetting all the troubles in the world. The 14 songs are a collection of familiar classic pop tunes as well as some perhaps lesser-known material that she sings with Don Thompson on piano, vibes, and bass and Reg Schwager on guitar. Ron Sexsmith’s “Secret Heart” is a musical masterpiece sung with a tenderness that reveals the great depth that Diana discovers within a song’s story; it is achingly beautiful in its unadorned honesty. There are songs where we hear a joyfulness in Diana’s singing, such as “Sweet Happy Life” or on “You and I,” which are two of the more buoyant bossa nova tracks. Composed by Fred Hersch with lyrics by Norma Winstone, “A Wish (Valentine)” is another winning ballad track, as is Randy Newman’s “Snow.” There’s a wistful and innocent vocal quality that Diana possesses in songs such as the Bee Gees hit “How Deep Is Your Love” and on the Lennon and McCartney song “Here, There and Everywhere” that is transformative as one listens. Soft Winds and Roses is a gentle musical balm for the heart." (theabsolutesound.com)

Diana Panton, vocals
Don Thompson, bass, piano, vibraphone
Reg Schwager, guitar

Diana Panton
Her keen aesthetic sense has attracted the attention of some of the jazz world’s most respected masters. When Order of Canada and legendary multi-instrumentalist Don Thompson first heard Panton sing at age 19, he recommended she audition for the reputed jazz workshop at the Banff Center for the Arts (Canada). There, she studied under Norma Winstone (and in subsequent visits, Jay Clayton and Sheila Jordan). "When the great singer Sheila Jordan said Diana Panton 'sounds like the sweetest bird you'll ever hear', she helped define some of the ephemeral delicacy that marks Panton as unique." (Stuart Broomer, Toronto Life)

Before recording her first album, Panton completed an Honours Masters degree in French literature and fulfilled a teaching engagement at the University of Paris (France), followed by a position as a French Sessional Lecturer at McMaster University (Canada). She then completed a teaching degree in French, Visual and Dramatic Arts which would eventually lead to her current position at Westdale Secondary (Canada).

When the time finally arrived to go into the studio, national award-winning guitarist Reg Schwager was invited to join Don Thompson for some stellar accompaniment behind Panton’s pure vocals. The late great Montreal jazz critic Len Dobbin called “...yesterday perhaps” one of the finest debut CDs he had heard in years! It landed Diana on the covers of VIEW and NOW Magazine and the album made NOW's TOP 10 Discs of the Year. The album was also awarded a Silver Disc Award upon its release in Japan in 2011.

Since her initial CD release, Panton’s career has been gathering steady momentum. Her impressive catalogue of internationally acclaimed albums have garnered numerous honours, including a second Silver Disc Award in Japan, three JUNO nominations, 7 Hamilton Music Awards, a host of National Jazz Award nominations, Canadian and American Independent Music Award nominations. Her sophomore album, "if the moon turns green ..." was the first place jury-selection to perform at the Jazz à Juan Révélations where she was voted Première Dauphine by the Juan public. Most recently, she was named one of Canada’s TOP 5 Jazz Vocalists by CBC radio host Tim Tamashiro.

One gets the feeling this is just the tip of the iceberg for Panton... this artist is on the brink of something big.

This album contains no booklet.