The latest smooth vazz vocalist to hit the scene is a teenager, Maxine Hardcastle.Yes, she is the daughter of British smooth jazz composer Paul Hardcastle. Maxine sings and has co-writing credits on three song on the new CD that was released last week called Hardcastle 4. They are “Smooth Jazz Is Bumpin'," “Was It Love” and “Where Are You Now.”
The budding young singer's voice is a real treat, and recalls frequent Hardcastle collaborator Helen Rogers. (Rogers will be back on the next Jazzmasters' CD). Maxine was the inspiration for an old Hardcastle song called "Maxine," and she also had a spoken-word monologue throughout a song called "Look to the Future" from the Hardcastle 2 album released in 1996.
Ironically, Maxine turned 19 years old in April. You may recall that Hardcastle had a worldwide dance smash back in 1985 with the song “19,” which used spoken-word reports from Vietnam throughout the song that described the average age of American combatants as 19.
"It’s the first time that she’s actually done something really popular in the studio, and she really likes this type of music," says Paul Hardcastle. "Who knows? She could have her own album out in a couple of years time. We don’t want to rush her into it. Her songwriting’s getting very, very good at the moment, and I think she’s got a great future ahead of her."
We agree.
Meanwhile, the first hit from Hardcastle 4 is called “Serene,” which is rapidly moving up Radio & Records' smooth jazz chart.
No comments:
Post a Comment