Rondi Charleston: In My Life CD Review
A Bonus DVD Makes This an Enjoyable Set for Jazz Fans
May 8, 2009
This collection includes both Rondi Charleston's In My Life CD as well as a bonus DVD Jazz at Lincoln Center presents: Rondi Charleston - Live! At Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola. Combining pop with jazz creates a unique sound. Her interpretations of the Carol King song “Beautiful” and the Lennon/McCartney song “In My Life” as well as Sting’s “Until” are nothing short of enchanting.
Other songs on the CD include “Baby Don’t Quit Now,” “Someone to Light up My Life,” “I’m Old Fashioned,” “Estate,” "Bewtiched, Bothered, and Bewildered," "Shall We Dance," and more. Each one is a delight for anyone who loves jazz, a captivating voice, and great music and lyrics. There are 14 CD tracks and 12 DVD tracks in this set, which includes a video profile created by Charleston for her fans to get to know her.
Julliard Beginnings
Charleston grew up with music. Her mother teaches and her father is a classical music radio announcer. They passed on their magnetic vocal qualities to their daughter. By the age of 18 she was in Julliard’s Voice Department, and then went into opera.
While keeping up with her music, she went to journalism school and after breaking a big story was hired by ABC News where she spent six years working with Diane Sawyer on Primetime Live. Charleston won a Peabody and an Emmy for her work.
Charleston and Obama
Returning to music, Rondi wrote a song which caught the attention of then President-Elect Obama’s staff and she was subsequently invited to attend an inaugural ball. The song, “Song for the Ages” tied for the most number ones the very first week it was on the radio. While she did not actually sing it at the ball, the song was impressive enough to the president's staff to afford her an official invitation.
Relaxing Vocal Style
This new CD/DVD set is a great way to listen to good music, sit back, and relax. It’s filled with great tunes and Charleston’s lyrical voice. About her music she says, “My hope is that people listen to my recordings and experience our performances as an opportunity to suspend time and space and just relax. If they feel joyful, lighter and as if they've had a mini-vacation from the staggering demands of everyday life, then I've given back some of the energy they've given me and, hopefully, the notion that it's never too late to reinvent yourself, discover your passion and live your dreams."
Rondi Charleston returns to New York City on June 1 for another engagement at Lincoln Center’s Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola.
