Silje Nergaard Nightwatch (2003) Sacd

Like Alanis Morissette, Macy Gray has the unenviable task of her work always being measured against her brilliant debut album, On How Life Is. One of the most joyous releases of the decade, its blend of pop and soul seemed to captivate everyone who heard it. Since then Gray's appeared on the big screen (in Training Day and Spiderman), guested on songs for Santana and Fatboy Slim, and in 2001 tried to recreate the formula of her debut on a follow-up album, The Id - with diminishing returns.

Phil Woods is right at home during these 2002 sessions at Red Rock Recording Studio near his home in Delaware Water Gap, Pennsylvania. With his regular group (Bill Charlap, Steve Gilmore, and Bill Goodwin) minus trumpeter Brian Lynch, Woods adds strings conducted by his old friend Eric Doney on this collection of ballads. "And When We're Young" is the alto saxophonist's tribute to the late Senator Robert F. Kennedy, who was assassinated around the time it was written. The leader's lush alto gives way to a brisk Latin-flavored passage featuring powerful solos by violinist Andy Stein and Charlap on piano, while Woods humorously detours into "Nature Boy" upon his return. The strings introduce a lively arrangement of "It Never Entered My Mind," and another favorite of the alto saxophonist, "If I Should Lose You." Unlike many jazz recordings with strings, they complement rather than overwhelm the musicians. But it is almost impossible for a Phil Woods-led date to turn out less than excellent.

Susan Wong maintains a low-profile in her home town of Hong Kong yet is one of the best selling Hong Kong artists throughout South East Asia, and has a global following with releases in Japan, Germany, USA and Korea and a strong following in Brazil, Mexico and Spain.