Within the Fourteenth Hour

Vocalist Anna Maria Flechero is the product of a culturally rich heritage and a vibrant musical environment. Born in San Francisco of African American and Filipino ancestry, she learned to play piano by ear as a youngster, writing tunes and lyrics that reflect the influences of the sounds of Motown and the Latin rhythms of her Mission District. Moving to Japan, Flechero honed her skills as a solo artist, accompanying herself on piano, composing and performing original songs and interpreting jazz standards. While in Japan, Anna Maria met legendary pianist Cedar Walton, who provided opportunities for her to perform with his trio. It was the beginning of a long-standing musical friendship.

Now in 2008, after hundreds of performances and years of creating her own personal style, Flechero once again had the opportunity to coordinate with Walton on her self-produced sophomore release, Within the Fourteenth Hour.  This soulful recording features 10 well-placed pop and jazz standards with a bonus track being an original Flechero cut entitled “Pretty Soon.”

The journey begins with the classic standard “Misty,” fashioned into a swinging up-beat track that is personified by Flechero’s distinctive voice and R&B inflections.  This track features the incomparable Cedar Walton, David Williams and Lewis Nash.  Their symbiosis is evident from the first notes, clearly articulating an atmosphere of interaction and chemistry.  The first “A” features Williams and Nash trading rhythmically active phrases, while Walton’ s solo lines dance atop, creating interest and bounce within the spaces of Flechero’s vocals.  This symbiosis allows Flechero to command the cut with playful passages and confident scat lines that clearly punctuate the setting as being a true jazz cut.

Anna Maria Flechero

The Cedar Walton Trio guests once again on “God Bless the Child,” creating a strong traditional jazz interpretation of this Billy Holiday standard.  This cut gives us the chance to see an intimate, more serious side of Anna Maria’s vocals as she conveys a storyline of honesty and sincerity with each passing phrase.  Walton’s trio creates a metric modulation within the solo section, creating a nice texture change within the cut.  Flechero sells the track to the final low note while Walton, Nash and Williams delicately punctuate the final outro.  
 

Anna Maria Flechero