Jazzy Ash Goes NPR

Jazzy Ash - Bon Voyage album cover

"Where y'at?"  This is, according to several sources, a New Orleans way of saying "hello."  So a big "Where y'at?" to all of you who've found your way to this website looking for information on Jazzy Ash, AKA Ashli Christoval, and her new album of New Orleans-inspired music Bon Voyage in the wake of hearing my review on NPR's All Things Considered.  (While I've been to New Orleans a couple times, I claim no expertise in N'Awlins language and will stop forthwith.)

You can -- and should -- listen to that review on NPR, but if you'd like, you can read my original review (similar in many ways to the NPR review) as well as read some thoughts from Christoval herself on those two Ellas I talk about in my review -- Ella Jenkins and Ella Fitzgerald.

Regardless of you're a new listener or longtime reader, thanks for stopping by! 

Review: Bon Voyage - Jazzy Ash

Bon Voyage by Jazzy Ash album cover

New Orleans’ musical tradition has produced many memorable artists.  But while Jazzy Ash isn’t the first kids musician to use the city of New Orleans as musical inspiration, for a region with such a vital musical heritage, when it comes to kids music it’s still been underrepresented.  With her latest album Bon Voyage, Jazzy Ash continues to further fold New Orleans’ rich musical tradition into songs for the kindergarten set.

Jazzy Ash is the nom de plume of musician Ashli Christoval.  Although her mom was from New Orleans, her dad from Trinidad, and she spent summers in New Orleans with her mom’s aunts and grandparents, it wasn’t until a couple years ago on that she really started to incorporated the music of the Crescent City into her own recordings.

On Bon Voyage Christoval covers one of New Orleans’ best-known native sons, Louis Armstrong, on “Heebie Jeebies,” a song he made famous.  But beyond the Dixieland jazz sound strongly identified with the city, Jazzy Ash uses her bright, playful voice in other genres more commonly associated with the rural areas around the city, like the zydeco sound on “Leap Frog.”  And while a couple songs draw attention to their New Orleans origin, for the most part Christoval uses the bayou mixture of jazz, blues, and creole as the starting point for songs that could be appropriate for Louisiana, but might be at home as well in her current home state of California (see the gypsy jazz track “Firefly").

The album is most appropriate for listeners ages 3 through 7, and while you can't stream the whole thing online, you can listen to "Heebie Jeebies" here (and pick up a beignet recipe here.)

With Bon Voyage, Jazzy Ash fully connects with her own family’s musical heritage, yet incorporates those 100-year-old traditions into 21st century kids music.  It's a buoyant and warm-hearted album for the younger set.  Definitely recommended.

Note: I received a copy of the album for possible review.

Itty-Bitty Review: Home - Jazzy Ash

Kindie as a genre is moving away from the folk and rock that were its bread and butter, but oh-so-slowly.  Some hip-hop, sure, some classical and other genres represent, but it's still rock (and folk-rock) that kindie is known for.  I have to guard against my own tendencies in that regard, otherwise it'd be nothing but power-pop and indie rock here ALL THE TIME, and what would be the usefulness of that?

Of course, it's possible to make a perfectly dull album for kids that just happens to mine a less-traveled musical seam.  Luckily, that's not the case with the latest album from Los Angeles-based musician Ashli Christoval, AKA Jazzy Ash.  Her new album Home explores the sound of New Orleans, and while it's not the first to tackle the Big Easy's big musical history, it's definitely one of the most vibrant.  She moves from the unmistakeable sound of the city's famous second-line bands on the Mardi Gras-themed duet with Mista Cookie Jar on "Throw Me Something Mista" to her zydeco reworking of "Shortenin' Bread" on "Baby Loves Beignets."  There's a hint of the overtly educational here (see "Every Family's Different"), but there are more hits than misses, like "Jitterbug," which swings (and dances), and the graceful "Tuba Lullaby."  Musically, Ash has put together a solid backing band, and her own voice is one of the most appealing in kindie.  She's not at the level of the Okee Dokee Brothers in terms of her songwriting -- to be fair, they're on their fifth album at this point -- but as I listened to the album, there was something about this album that reminded me of the bluegrass duo in their playfulness and exploration of American musical traditions.

The 32-minute album will most appeal to kids ages 3 through 7.  Home is a big step forward for Ash, and as she continues her career as a kids musician, I'm eager to see where she lands next.  Recommended.