By Doug Levine
Washington
09 April 2006
 
  
  
Jazz has always embraced youth. Vocalists Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan were in their teens when they were first discovered. So were Nat "King" Cole and Louis Armstrong. VOA's Doug Levine introduces us to a new discovery, who at age 19, is already conquering the jazz world.

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It's still too early to know if singer Erin Boheme is going to be the next Ella Fitzgerald, but if her debut album is any indication, Erin Boheme is a name jazz fans will be hearing about for a long, long time.

Erin was drawn to the Great American Songbook while growing up in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. She modeled her singing after Billie Holiday, Peggy Lee, Bobby Darin, and her all-time favorite performer, Frank Sinatra. She became fascinated with Sinatra after hearing him sing "Fly Me To The Moon" on the radio. Now, more than seven years after his death, Erin pays tribute to "Ol' Blue Eyes" with an original composition that incorporates the titles of 19 different Frank Sinatra songs.

"One Night With Frank" appears on Erin Boheme's debut album, "What Love Is."

As impressive as her vocal skills, Erin's songwriting is as natural as that of any seasoned veteran. In addition to her Frank Sinatra tribute song, Erin penned five other originals, including the title track, "What Love Is."

"Happiness, sadness, laughter, tears, lust, loss, pain and joy. All of these things," says Erin Boheme, "are the reflections of 'What Love Is.'" Wise indeed, beyond all of Erin's 19 years.

With Erin Boheme's entry into the jazz vocal field, one thing is for sure; youth will never go out of style. And neither will a young singer's passion for such classics as "Teach Me Tonight."