Jazz a la Carte, May 13 & 14, 2011.  Carla Cook is daring. She is a jazz singer/songwriter who sings standards beautifully -- but she doesn't stop there. Cook is willing to put a jazz spin on songs not written by traditional jazz composers. Songs that, until you hear her sing them, you'd never imagine could be interpreted as jazz. This native Detroiter, who grew up in a musically rich and diverse environment, brings all her influences to bear within her repertoire. In her songbook you'll find elements of R&B, European classical, Motown, Blues and Gospel. Cook has always eschewed labels, and refuses to become a jazz purist or snob. That willingness to simply sing what she loves, bringing an earthy sophistication to every song, is what gives Cook her signature style. 

While some jazz vocalists limit their repertoire of popular music to the swing of the 20's and 30's, Tin Pan Alley composers and the bebop of the 40's, Cook goes beyond the American Jazz Standard Repertoire. She reinterprets songs from the rock and R&B worlds - giving a jazz flavor to such pop classics as Simon & Garfunkel's "Scarborough Fair", Marvin Gaye's "Inner City Blues", Bobbie Gentry's "Ode to Billie Joe" and Neil Young's "Heart of Gold". She sings great songs, period, be they the standards that are the foundation of her recordings and live performances, her refreshing original compositions, or a smattering of popular songs that were childhood favorites.

In her native Detroit, Cook started singing when she was a young child. Growing up, the Midwesterner sang in the Methodist Church. The secular music that she enjoyed ranged from R&B, rock, country and European classical. Though jazz has always been Cook's primary focus, she has been quoted as saying that her favorite artists range from Miles Davis to Chaka Khan to Johann Sebastian Bach. 

www.carlacook.com/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S4u7kUk8GhM