Select from the following releases from the Lesley Byers & The Jazz Cats catalog:

Undecided

Twisted

Slick Chick

Cool Yule

Lesley also is featured as a guest vocalist:

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Twisted Produced by Red Lip Records & Dugit Music Released in August 2003 Buy TWISTED from CDBabay.com and 100% of the proceeds is donated to the New Orleans Red Cross Fund!! Table of Contents: Track Listing Album Reviews Where to Buy Behind the Music

Click on the "Listen" link to hear a one-minute sound clip in MP3 format, where available.

Jukebox  Stream all available clips for Twisted with one click!
1	Listen	Just One of Those Things
2	Listen	Just Squeeze Me
3	Listen	Deed I Do
4	Listen	Somewhere Over the Rainbow
5	Listen	Everybody Loves My Baby
6	Listen	Twisted
7	Listen	How High the Moon
8	Listen	Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most
9	Listen	Taking a Chance on Love
10	Listen	P.S. I Love You
11	Listen	Too Darn Hot
12	Listen	Straighten Up & Fly Right

"Lesley Byers' 'Twisted' CD is just plain fun. It's exuberant, swinging and will bring a smile to your face as you listen."

"One of the benefits of being a diva is that you get to ham it up a bit - stretching a note, scatting, getting a little fortissimo now and then. The key is restraint. Lesley Byers has the balance right. Quite a few CDs come in from bands I know very little about - this one has been a most pleasant surprise. It's mostly nightclub jazz, not usually a favorite of mine, but I have to admit that it's so artfully done I might just pull on a sharkskin suit and head to Atlantic City to complete the vibe. There's loungy-Latin on "Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most", showcasing the instrumental skill of saxmen Doug Angleaccio and Ed Enright and, of course, the songbird voice of Byers. The title track features a blend of bop and swing that's the soul of this collection, 12 songs equally suitable for dancing or just being cool. And just when you're settling in, the thermostat goes haywire and it's "Too Darn Hot". Bassist Jake Vinsel fans the flames with a sizzling solo, then the album coasts to a stop with a sweet version of "Straighten Up and Fly Right". What a ride."

"If not for the 2003 copyright date, you'd think that Lesley Byers & The Jazz Cats, Twisted, was some newly discovered session from the 1950's. It has the intimate, casual feel of that period with a fine singer backed by a hip small combo. Lesley Byers has a timeless vocal sound, alternately seductive and innocent. She could easily be slotted next to Chris Connor, June Christy or Rosemary Clooney. Her energy and coolness are impeccable. She can work a Jazz theme like 'Twisted' with the best of them and, when she has to play the 'girl singer' role on a standard like 'How High The Moon,' she has the natural class and sunniness of a '50's chanteuse. The Jazz Cats are a very tasty combo who cover the Swing to Bop continuum very well. With Ed Enright's baritone in the lead, the group often has a Gerry Mulligan cast to it, although on Enright's solos he sounds more like Pepper Adams. Class and hipness work in equal measure here with marvelous results."

"Lesley is one of the bright new stars on the horizon getting ready to let the world know about her music. She sounds like a seasoned professional with her phrasing on evergreens like "How High the Moon", "Just Squeeze Me" and "Over the Rainbow". Her interpretation of every song in the CD "Twisted" is classic swing so it's no wonder her star is shining already....Lesley Byers has ARRIVED!"

"Vocalist Lesley Byers and her Jazz Cats, who drew praise from this reviewer for their earlier album, "A Slick Chick," are back with more heartwarming jazz from the heartland that is anything but Twisted. There have been some changes, saxophonist Doug Angelaccio is in, guitarist Zvonimir Tot out; there’s a new bassist, Jake Vinsel, and not one but two pianists, Tom Vaitsas and Chris Mahieu, sitting in (not simultaneously) for John Proulx. But the basic format remains the same, with Byers in the forefront on every number and the Cats purring cozily behind her. "Twisted", of course, is Annie Ross’s wry takeoff on tenor saxophonist Wardell Gray’s well-known bop riff, and Byers (with some vocal 'help' from the band), swings right into it, stepping aside for Ed Enright’s baritone solo and some unison blowing before neatly wrapping up the package. The rest of the material is even more familiar, consisting entirely of standards and a pair of jazz ensigns, "Straighten Up and Fly Right" and "Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most." Byers and the Cats manage to make each of them seem fresh and charming, with "Spring," "Straighten Up," "How High the Moon" and Cole Porter’s "Too Darn Hot" among the high spots. Soloists aren’t named but it’s easy to affirm that they include Enright, Angelaccio, Vaitsas, Mahieu and Vinsel, each of whom has some engaging ideas to share. A word or two of advice: if a singer plans to open an album with Porter’s "Just One of Those Things," he or she should remember that "just" is pronounced as spelled, not "jest" or (horrors!) "jist." Byers, whose diction is otherwise near-flawless, has some problems there. But we can live with that. Minor quibbles aside, Byers leads a ship-shape ensemble that plays with dexterity and gusto. In the liner notes she writes that they’ve traveled 'a zillion miles together,' which bears witness to the love they must have for the music and the part they play in helping to keep it alive. As I wrote in that earlier review, Byers and the Cats must be even more delightful to see as well as hear, but if you’re not in their neighborhood, Twisted will at least give you an inkling of their talent, which is impressive. "

"Just today received the CD and already listened to it twice...one time in my office, and just now when i am writing to you. Lovely to listen to, really enjoying this..... I will be moving to the bigger radio station Alphen Stad FM and on March 9, in the first show on that station, the CD will be taken into airplay with great pleasure."

"Lesley Byers is not only rooted in the style of the best big band swing and jazz vocalists, but she always make the listener feel good. Her voice is clear and confident with a wonderfully meaningful sense for both the lyrics and the music. Byers and the Jazz Cats swing!"

"The overuse and misapplication of the DIVA moniker has become so common in the last several years that it's refreshing to discover someone actually worthy of the title. Lesley Byers IS a Diva. Beyond the amber-crystal vocal quality, the educated ear, the experienced delivery and the confident, sassy musical phrasing is the exuberance of a performer who owns the stage and clearly entertains. The Luscious Lesley leaves no doubt about what a singer really delivers....a song, an emotion, a memory, a smile & a wink, and a warmth that lingers like the last sip of a rare vintage. Bravo!"

"Lesley Byers & her group are first, proponents of our beloved ''American Songbook''........which has come into its own, particularly in the last 2-3 decades. Nowadays, there's a much more eclectic audience for the jazz/pop style......And, entities like MTV, Rod Stewart, et al are giving the jazz/pop musical genre some new clothes. Byers & her group treat us to a panoply of serenity, passion, lyricism, tenderness, and most of all swing! We listeners are fortunate to be showered with music that is accessible & well balanced in idiom, not bare of nobility of musical thought, admittedly easy to understand, but still individual & savorful, & most of all, offered in a way that withstands repeated listening.

"Lesley - This the kind of jazz that I grew up with and that made me a lifelong fan of Swing and Jazz. Just wonderful! You are a big time singer young lady. Superb music. Congratulations on another winner."

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