Celebrated for her eclecticism, improvisation, pop-jazz excursions, scatting and “cheery piano” throughout her nearly 20 years as a recording artist, the incredible Brenda Earle Stokes has also done it all effortlessly in her multi-faceted musical career. The Canadian born performer has been a choral conductor, classical vocalist, church organist, off-Broadway music director, early childhood music teacher and cruise ship piano bar entertainer.
Another interesting fun fact is that she is a classically trained pianist who switched to jazz after hearing Oscar Peterson, who later became a mentor as she received the Oscar Peterson Scholarship to study jazz piano at York University in Toronto. Featuring the trio of bassist Evan Gregor and drummer Ross Pederson as well as the sublime trumpeter Ingrid Jensen, the undeniably compelling, dynamically expressed ode to Motherhood she shares on her socially conscious, thematically provocative sixth album definitely falls under the jazz banner.
But listening to Stokes weave her colorful, lyrically insightful, deeply poignant and emotionally hard-hitting narratives, it feels more like the audio of an amazing and quite unforgettable one-woman stage musical. One track in particular, the eight minute “Sharp Edges” features her jazz cats providing instrumental support to what is essentially a dramatic monologue (with a smidgen of talk-sing) about the multitude of dangers and illnesses that children can face in the modern world – all of which make Motherhood a tremendous challenge.
The other pieces roll in traditional song form, but weave narratives modern mamas can all relate to – from reflections on (and anxiety inherent in) “The Endless Wait” for a child to be born to the quirky “Who Am I Now?,” which contemplates the vast identity shift when one becomes a parent. One of the most engaging cuts is “Kathleen,” which finds Stokes addressing a fictional young mom about all the challenges and responsibilities of a new role as a woman that includes the line “You try to survive/But it eats you alive.”
Stokes tempers that sort of stark reality with the Stride-flavored charm of “Loose Tooth Blues,” which finds her imagining the way a mother would see the world through a young child’s eyes. Towards the end, Stokes offers the rich emotional encouragement to struggling moms on the gospel piano driven “The Strength of a Woman” and wishes everyone a spirited Happy Mother’s Day – which, not coincidentally, is the day in 2024 when this bold, wildly adventurous album was released.
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