Several times throughout the album she uses her voice as another instrument, as she does during “August,” without actually singing lyrically, nor is she scatting. The ethereal element is used to great effect.  Harcy’s original composition contains a beautiful guitar solo by Ben Monder. The instrumentals for “August,” including the drumming of Kendrick Scott, Matt Clohesy’s thoughtful bass playing and Randy Ingram’s piano chops, all contribute to this outstanding tune. At 7:26, the song is the longest track from The Wish, but like the rest of this collection of songs, the listener never grows restless. 

On A Moment’s Glance Hardy covered the Beatle’s tune “And I Love Her.” This time she dipped into the Lennon and McCartney archives and plucked “I’m Looking Through You,” setting the song to new arrangements with a jazz audience in mind. Hardy’s reading does Sir Paul and John proud. Jaleel Shaw (alto sax) has an extended solo, but the soloist who really catches your ear is Hardy’s fiancé and band mate, pianist Randy Ingram. Ingram approaches the piano with the same sensitivity that Hardy approaches her singing. This is a song you want to make sure you are dialed into. Covering a song is difficult enough; writing new arrangements for it makes it even more daunting, but to do both with a Beatle’s tune and pull it off in fine style is a major accomplishment. 

Other songs to listen for on The Wish include the Wayne Shorter tune, “Song of the Iris,” and the saxophone heavy “All or Nothing at All” from the pens of Arthur Altman and Jack Lawrence. An interesting sidebar to “All or Nothing at All,” is that it was originally recorded in 1939 by Frank Sinatra and Harry James, but did not become a hit until 1943.  Hardy has included three original compositions on The Wish that explore three different moods and stages of romance, “On the Verge: The Wish Suite Part I,” “Patience: The Wish Suite Part II,” and “Soaring: The Wish Suite Part III.”  

With 14 tracks and 1:15:50 of playing time, this is a long project that never feels long. You get a lot of great music that you never get tired of listening to, and sung by one of the brightest young stars on today’s jazz scene.  

On October 16, Hardy will be celebrating the release of her new CD at New York City’s the Jazz Standard. Watch the singer’s website www.juliehardy.com for more information. You can also listen to audio clips through her website or pre-order the CD.