Rickie Lee Jones

Whether it’s a stubborn case of artistic integrity or just missed opportunities, Jones has had a mixed career since her astounding 1979 debut. But her large cult following will approve of this first-rate collection of covers. With such support musicians as Joe Jackson, and songs spanning the last century drawn from jazz, Broadway and rock, this album showcases her interpretive voice more effectively than almost anything she’s done. Jones remakes Traffic’s “Low Spark of High-Heeled Boys” and Steely Dan’s “Showbiz Kids,” but she’s at her best on the jazz tunes, deftly swinging on the standards “I Can’t Get Started” and “On the Street Where You Live.” Sharp collaborations include a duet with Joe Jackson on West Side Story's "One Hand, One Heart," and an easy swinging "Up a Lazy River" with Taj Mahal. And, on Charlie Chaplin’s "Smile," Jones can make you cry for the sake of our doomed, dreamy humanity.