| Jazz |
Jamie Shew’s Invitation, A Lush, Personal Journey of Sound, Story, and Healing
There are albums that entertain, albums that impress, and then there are those rare albums that seem to speak, to whisper in your ear, to sit beside you like an old friend, to take your hand through the shadows and toward something warmer. Jamie Shew’s Invitation is one of those rare records: an offering of voice and vision, richly arranged and deeply lived, where every note feels drawn from memory and shaped by feeling.
From the very first bars of the title track, “Invitation,” Shew signals that we are not entering a typical jazz vocal album. There’s something unusual here, not in volume or bravado, but in perspective. She’s not simply performing songs; she’s sculpting experiences. Her voice doesn’t soar for the sake of it, it lingers, it sighs, it smiles. And just as integral to the journey are the sumptuous arrangements she herself has signed, crafted with a care that borders on the painterly. These aren’t just songs—they’re moodscapes, tailored rooms for the listener to inhabit.
Shew’s artistry is expansive, but never ostentatious. What sets her apart isn’t how much she can do, but how wisely she chooses what not to do. There’s restraint, taste, and a clear sense of narrative through every track, an artistic sensibility that values emotional truth over technical display. This is the work of a musician who has not only honed her voice, but found it.
Invitation is also a testament to resilience. Life has tested Jamie Shew, of that we are certain, even if the details remain unspoken. And yet, through this record, one hears the return of breath, of joy rediscovered. Whether delivering her own compositions or breathing new life into well-worn standards, Shew approaches each piece with both reverence and reinvention. The result is a collection that feels timeless, yet unmistakably personal, a diary rendered in melody.
Nowhere is this more evident than in the choice of collaborators. The roster reads like a who’s-who of modern jazz: pianist Jeremy Siskind (Arturo Sandoval, Kurt Elling), guitarist Mike Scott (Stevie Wonder, Monica Mancini), bassist Lyman Medeiros (Michael Bublé, Lew Soloff), and drummer Mark Ferber (Lee Konitz, Billy Childs). But perhaps the most luminous of these collaborators is Kait Dunton, whose expressive work on Hammond B3 and Rhodes keys elevates the tracks she graces to another dimension. Dunton doesn’t accompany, she dialogues, weaving her sonic presence around Shew’s voice with grace and confidence. Together, they are not just two women in music, but two kindred spirits creating something beautifully and defiantly their own.
Standout moments abound. In “All or Nothing at All,” Shew’s fondness for James Bond films becomes audible, as the arrangement shimmers with noir elegance and suspense. A sultry swing bassline opens the track, building toward a cinematic climax that never overwhelms but constantly entices. Shew knows drama, but she also knows subtlety, a rare and powerful combination.
On “Squeeze Me,” her playful side shines. The song becomes a wink, a private joke, a jazzed-up love note to her real life. “After 18 years of marriage,” she reveals, “I couldn’t call my new love ‘boyfriend.’ So I call him my ‘main squeeze.’” The humor is gentle, the delivery teasing, the connection real. Here, again, we hear that blend of story and song, music and life.
The album closes with “I’m Glad There is You,” a choice that feels both natural and profound. It is a quiet embrace, a song full of gratitude and gentle optimism. Siskind’s arrangement introduces a subtle Latin flavor, allowing the album to end not with a bang, but with a breath, a moment of warmth that lingers long after the final chord fades.
In a musical era often dominated by volume, spectacle, and self-promotion, Jamie Shew reminds us of another path: the path of intimacy, of craft, of stories told with tenderness and intention. As a vocalist, she resists ornamentation in favor of meaning. As an arranger, she respects tradition while gently bending it toward her own aesthetic. And as a woman, she sings from a place of truth, never asking for sympathy, but offering connection.
Invitation is not the flashiest album of the year. It does not shout. It does not compete. But it glows. It welcomes. It lingers in the room after the lights are low. It is, perhaps, one of the most beautiful albums of 2025, a record written and performed not to impress the world, but to express the heart. It’s an open door. All we have to do is walk through.
Thierry De Clemensat
Member at Jazz Journalists Association
USA correspondent for Paris-Move and ABS magazine
Editor in chief – Bayou Blue Radio, Bayou Blue News
PARIS-MOVE, May 5th 2025
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Musicians:
Jamie Shew, Vocals and Melodica
Jeremy Siskind, Piano
Kait Dunton, Rhodes and Hammond B3
Mike Scott, Guitar
Lyman Medeiros, Bass and Voice
Mark Ferber, Drums
Mario Jose, background vocals
Arranger: Jamie Shew
Producer: Jamie Shew
Recording Engineer: Talley Sherwood, Tritone Recording
Mix Engineer: Talley Sherwood, Tritone Recording
Mastering Engineer: Peter Doell, 21st Century Audio
Album Cover Design: Frank Guthrie
Photography: Anna Webber Photography
Videography: Austin Hughes and Frank Guthrie
Make-up: Breeze Varner
Tracklist:
Invitation
Comes Love
Each Time
Close Your Eyes
Ghost Of A Chance
Secret Love
Enough
Letters From You
Bewitched, Bothered, And Bewildered
All Or Nothing At All
Just Squeeze Me
I’m Glad There Is You
Upcoming events:
Thursday, May 8 @ 5:30PM — 9:00PM: Jamie Shew Trio at Roost 374 – featuring guitarist Mike Scott & bassist Sezin Ahmet, Roost 374, San Clemente
Monday, May 19 @ 10:00AM: Guest Clinician with Glacier Peak HS
Thursday, May 22 @ 7:00PM — 8:30PM (PDT, UTC-07): Jamie Shew’s Spicy, Classy, (and a little) Sassy: A Star-Studded Album Release Show with LA’s Finest, Campus JAX, Newport Beach, CA 92660
Thursday, May 29 @ 7:00PM — 9:30PM: Jamie Shew Album Release Concert with Mike Scott on guitar, Lyman Medeiros on bass, and Mark Ferber on drums, 17th St. Grill – JoJo’s Hideaway, Tustin
Wednesday, June 11 @ 7:00PM — 10:00PM: Jamie Shew with the Tom Dante Quartet, Gaslamp, Long Beach
Saturday, June 21 @ 6:15PM — 10:30PM: San Diego Album Release Party, The Jazz Lounge, San Diego
Sunday, June 29 @ 7:30PM — 9:00PM (PDT, UTC-07): Jamie Shew’s Spicy, Classy, (and a little) Sassy: A Star-Studded Album Release Show with LA’s Finest, Herb Alpert’s VIBRATO, Los Angeles
Saturday, August 2 @ 7:00PM: Jamie Shew Album Release Tour, Boxley’s, North Bend, WA 98045
Saturday, September 20 @ 8:30PM — 11:30PM: Jamie Shew Quartet at Club 1881, Club 1881, Pasadena