bah!

i don't know about you, but i've had it up to here with modern (read: "adult contemporary") singers jumping on the jazz-standard bandwagon.

first it was rod stewart. (and in linking to this, i see that he's actually done three albums of standards!) then regis philbin (god help us). when i learned that queen latifah gave it a go i thought i might have a heart attack. and now i've discovered that chaka khan has thrown her hat into the ring.

wtf?

i admit i am totally biased about this, given that i host a weekly radio program of classic jazz vocalists. i mean, the resurgence of interest in this music is to be applauded, but these modern singers seem to totally wash the life out of these songs. chaka kahn ain't no ella fitzgerald, that's all i'm sayin'.

of course, i can be a little hypocritical about this, too... while the modern versions of cole porter tunes in the film "de-lovely" drove me bonkers, i did enjoy hearing kevin spacey become bobby darin in "beyond the sea." (i do tend to lose all capability of rational thought when it comes to bobby darin, though.)

i'm feeling a little grumpy about this topic. my head still hurts a little (though the swelling is way down from last night), and i'm really tired. i'm spending my last day as a 35-year-old feeling like a crochety old lady, complaining about how things were so much better back in the day...