Port Of Call (Universal)
Jazz isn't the first thing that springs to mind when Scandinavia pops up in conversation, but the wonderful Silje Nergaard is quietly putting that straight.
Port Of Call, her sixth studio release and most polished to date, distils all her vocal charms in a heart felt homily to the art of the song.
Elevated to celestial status in her native Norway, Nergaard first shot to prominence at age 16, when joining an impromptu jam session on stage at Oslo's Molde International Jazz Festival. That performance with Jaco Pastorius' band unwittingly launched her international career and bent the ear of guitar virtuoso Pat Metheny, who featured on Nergaard's stunning 1990 debut Tell Me Where You're Going.
Some experiments in jazz-country fusion were followed by two enthusiastically received sets in her native tongue.
But on Port Of Call she's shooting for mass appeal and is happy to lean on the vocalists and songsmiths that have most inspired her.