I believe the role of the opening track of an album is to draw you in, make you want to continue to explore the music, and set the stage for what’s to follow.  You’re either immediately drawn in or you search for the track which will provide that stimulus.  “The Lamp Is Low,” the first track of Nnenna Freelon’s new album,  Home Free, delivers in this role. It is the first of many tracks where you will be hitting the repeat button before you’re all the way through this glorious CD.

What makes Home Free such a splendid CD is that Freelon takes a number of well known compositions and, through arrangements mostly by her and members of her band, delivers versions that are completely new, fresh and memorable.  Within the liner notes, Freelon shares a part of her artistic vision with this insight, “I love exploring the non-standard approach to the music of the American songbook.  Our arrangements are a central focus for the band’s musical personality.”

She goes on to say, “Home can be many things—a place of family, community, region, and country.  For me, home is that space where you feel comfortable in your own skin and free to just be.”  Freelon is clearly at home with the long- time core members of her band that perform on this album, who could be called the “Killer B’s”—Brandon McCune on piano, Wayne Batchelor on bass, Kinah Boto Ayah on drums and Beverly Botsford on percussion. There are other musicians who supplement the proceedings in fine fashion, but it is the symbiosis and insouciance between Freelon and the Killer B’s that deliver the musical satisfaction.

Songs include “The Lamp Is Low,” “I Feel Pretty” with a flugelhorn interlude by Ray Codrington, “The Very Thought Of You” with Ira Wiggins’ mood-setting choruses on tenor saxophone, “Theme From The Valley Of The Dolls” featuring Scott Sawyer on guitar, “Smile”  and “You And The Night And The Music.” These are the first six tracks of the CD, which make it difficult to get to the end as you’re continuously hitting the repeat button. “Cell Phone Blues,” written by Freelon, has many fun lines (“can’t get no sugar from a cell phone, no use in even trying”) sure to raise howls of delight when it’s performed in concert.  “Lift Every Voice And Sing” and “America The Beautiful” bring the album to an exquisite close with a rap vocal by Pierce Freelon in the former and cello support provided by Timothy Holley in the latter.

Freelon’s ability to convincingly tell the story within the song and enable you to visualize the scenes in your mind’s eye is on full display on this album.  If you liked previous Concord Jazz releases such as 2005’s “Blueprint Of A Lady,” 2003’s “Nnenna Freelon Live” and 2002’s “Tales Of Wonder,” this is a must-buy addition to your Freelon collection.