Berkshire Living
September, 2009

On her self-penned modal-jazz-folk number “Usha’s Wedding,” on her latest CD,  Obsession, Tessa Souter’s insinuating vocals take on the quality of an Indian sitar. A  true jazz singer, Souter employs her voice as a musical instrument and as the member  of an ensemble. The New York-based, England-raised daughter of Afro-Indian-Caribbean parents brings this approach to the dozen tunes on Obsession, a collection of jazz tunes by the likes of Milton Nascimento, Kenny Barron, and Freddie
Hubbard, along with jazz versions of rock classics including Nick Drake’s “River Man,” Cream’s “White Room,” and the Beatles’ “Eleanor Rigby,” and in doing so creates a kind of modern Great Anglo-American songbook. Among others, the recording features Berkshire talent including guitarist Jason Ennis, drummer Conor Meehan, bassist Gary Wang, and violinist Todd Reynolds. Catch her in a rare local gig accompanied by Ennis, Meehan, and Wang in the Music & More series in New Marlborough, Mass., on September 26.

—SR (The Meeting House, 154 Hartsville-New Marlborough Rd./Route 57, New Marlborough,
Mass., 413.229.2785, www.newmarlborough.org)