Emma Smith: Live at Ronnie Scott’s

Taking British jazz to the States and absolutely nailing it, vocalist and diva Emma Smith celebrated the album launch of ‘Bitter Orange’ at the quintessential London jazz club Ronnie Scott’s.

Not only has vocalist Emma Smith been touring recently in the USA, but she is also the first British act to be signed to Brooklyn label La Reserva Records. In a stunning, engaging show across four shows, Emma nailed the tunes and wowed the audience with her amazing band: Jamie Safir (piano), Conor Chaplin (bass) and Luke Tomlinson (drums).

Whenever Emma performs, there is a sense of Performance (with a capital P) that started at Ronnie’s with a great version of The Frim-Fram Sauce made famous by Nat King Cole and Ella Fitzgerald.

This wonderful band filled Ronnie’s with enthusiasm and style, taking tracks from Bitter Orange and presenting them with pizazz. Although Emma has a great voice, it’s her joie de vivre and sense of entertaining the audience that makes her every show feel like the best ever.

There were standard tunes like You Go To My Head (where the very British Emma beautifully got away with NOT rhyming “chance” and “romance”) and Funny Face, but some more unusual, like the stunning London Pride and a delightfully rare rendition of the Disney surprise I’m in the Middle of a Muddle. Emma made each song her own.

One of my favourite tracks on Bitter Orange is the Smith and Safir original: What Took you so long? It was even better live.

My heart skipped when Emma took time to tell the story of her grandfather Chris, trombone player to the stars, before performing the Sinatra classic That’s Life. Chris senior (Emma’s dad is trumpeter Chris junior) was a huge influence on her and also on my musical journey: a special moment.

You can read my review of Bitter Orange here, and our podcast episode here,  but you really need to check out Emma’s tour dates to experience the show live. with Emma.