Vocalist Eugenie Jones to Release New Project “Eugenie”

EUGENIE JONES’ SELF-TITLED ALBUM OF GROOVE – INFUSED MELODIES, EXQUISITE
STRING ARRANGEMENTS, AND SONGS OF PASSION, BETRAYAL, AND REVENGE

RELEASES JANUARY 20, 2025

Produced by legendary bassist Lonnie Plaxico, EUGENIE sets to melody the singer/songwriter’s poignant experiences and observations within new original songs, fresh-take jazz standards, and beloved soul classics.

Seattle, WA—1 October 2024 — Award-winning singer, songwriter, producer, and music legacy advocate Eugenie Jones prepares to again captivate audiences with a new release. Her self-titled album EUGENIE hits airwaves on January 20, 2025.

Since she burst on the jazz scene in 2013, Seattle-based vocalist, composer, producer and legacy activist Eugenie Jones has proven to be one of today’s most evocative artists. Her new self-titled release, EUGENIE, produced by the acclaimed bassist and bandleader Lonnie Plaxico, casts a focused spotlight on the depth and breadth of Jones’ lyricism, as a songwriter with 32 published songs to her credit. Her keen lyricism is elevated by an adaptive vocal style that powerfully flexes between hard-swinging jazz classics, to sultry blues numbers and passionate renderings of emotively gripping ballads.

EUGENIE is the singer, songwriter’s sixth release on OPEN MIC Records. Unlike “Players,” recorded in Dallas, New York, Chicago, and Seattle with world-class musicians that included bassists Reggie Workman and Lonnie Plaxico, drummer Bernard “Pretty” Purdie, percussionist Bobby Sanabria, trumpeter Marquis Hill and legendary trombonist Julian Priester, EUGENIE is a single-disc project highlighting the depth and breadth of Jones’ lyricism and her exquisite vocal ability.

Jones and sixteen musicians recorded EUGENIE in New York and Seattle. The New York sessions feature Lonnie Plaxico on bass, pianists Brandon McCune and Mamiko Watanabe; Russell Carter on drums; Rico Jones on saxophone; trumpeter Gil Defay; Jessica Wang on cello; violinist Yoojin Park and percussionist Kahlil Bell. Plaxico also served as the project’s producer. “It was an honor to produce and perform with Eugenie Jones on her recording. She is laser-focused, full of expression, energy, and passion, with a voice that’s original and soulful. The selection of songs and Eugenie’s original music is an atmospheric experience,” states Plaxico.

The musicians on the Seattle date included pianists Darrius Willrich and Peter Adams; saxophonist Alex Dugdale; guitarist Michael Powers; bassists Elliot Kuykendall and Chris Symer; drummer Ronnie Bishop and Ernesto Pediangco on percussion.

The album features thirteen selections, including seven “Eugenie-ized” interpretations of jazz standards and soul classics composed by Nat Adderley, Oscar Brown, Jr., Nina Simone, Peggy Lee, Duke Ellington, Marvin Gaye, and Carole King. Additionally, there are six original compositions that demonstrate Jones’ sensual vocals and her intelligent, thoughtful writing skills. The album offers a mix of jazz, swing, blues, and soul melodies, with accentuating string arrangements woven into two of Jones’ original jazz ballads and the soul classic, “Natural Woman.”

The album opens with the satin smooth ballad, “Starlight Starbright,” telling the story of chance meetings and love born beneath a star-soaked sky. It is followed by “I Love Being Here with You,” a Peggy Lee staple and signature song of Jones’ predecessor, Seattle jazz great Ernestine Anderson. Jones’ version of the tune is a modernized, mellow, midtempo arrangement that is both bluesy and contemporary in its storyline, played in a slower, more evocative groove.

On Earle Hagen’s “Harlem Nocturne,” Jones evokes the ebony embers of an upper Manhattan after-hours club in the 1920s, with wonderfully shaped tones matched and sublimely buoyed by the horn play of saxophonist Rico Jones.

Jones’ enthralling rendition of Marvin Gaye’s hit “Trouble Man,” a song from the same-titled 1972 movie, arranged by Plaxico, retains its jazz edge and big-city swagger of the original. Jones’ rendition of the Nat Adderley/Oscar Brown classic, “Work Song,” features Jones’ powerful vocal extremes, the luminous horn play of trumpeter Gil Defay, and stop-time syncopations highlighted by a hard-time melody.

In Jones’ original, “Hold Back the Night,”—an original based on Philippians 4:8—soothing tones build to a crescendo carrying the message of standing against life’s troubles with focused thinking on what is true, honest, just, pure, excellent, and lovely. In addition to “Hold Back the Night,” Jones’ additional original compositions include a sassy Latin tune, “It’s Okay,” an upbeat bossa nova breakup song, and the percussion-propelled, bluesy swagger of “Say What You Will,” with its reap-what-you-sow lyrics.

The swinging, mainstream-motored “Why I Sing,” in which Jones assertively proclaims—”drive, drive, drive to wherever jazz lives”—is arguably her most autobiographical song. Lyrically, it highlights the two most important days in one’s life—the day one was born and the day one discovers why they’re here—and encourages listeners to stay true to their life dreams.

EUGENIE exemplifies how far Jones has come in the short life of her ten-year musical career. ‘I did not study music in school. I graduated with an MBA and worked in nonprofit and corporate marketing communications before realizing my inherent musical abilities, which I believe I inherited from my mother.” Jones’ mother, a soprano gospel singer, was the singer of the family, and when cancer claimed her life, Jones managed her grief by setting out to see if she could carry forward that part of her mom’s life.

With an international following, the Seattle-based artist has achieved significant success in the jazz world. She has ranked #7 on the Jazz Week Top 50 and #30 on their Top 100 Albums of the Year list. Additionally, she has been honored as a two-time Earshot Jazz NW Vocalist of the Year winner and is the only vocal artist to have received Earshot Jazz’s Recording of the Year award.

The International Jazz Association recognized Jones with the Jazz Hero Award for her community work, which involves organizing concerts that honor Seattle’s rich jazz African American music legacy while financially supporting nonprofit community service organizations. In 2023, the Seattle Jazz Hall of Fame inducted Jones, standing her alongside prior iconic recipients like Buddy Catlett, Julian Priester, Ernestine Anderson, and Jovino Santos Neto.

Jones has received extensive praise and recognition for her discography, which includes Black Lace, Blue Tears (2013), Come Out Swinging (2015), Players (2022), Players 1.1 (2023), and The Originals (2024). EUGENIE reflects the continued evolution of Jones’ gorgeous, jazz-honed vocals and clever, intelligent lyricism that has earned the artist comparisons to legendary African American female songwriters that have proceeded her, including Abbey Lincoln, Nina Simone, and Irene Higginbotham.

With this and her previous releases, Jones has consistently showcased her unique blend of original vocal jazz and creative interpretations of beloved standards and jazzed-soul classics. Her music has the power to move the soul, entertain, and attract new audiences, all while staying true to the genre. Listeners are in for a truly unforgettable jazz experience as Jones invites them into her Eugenie-ized world of music with her standing mantra—”Welcome to jazz, you can feel.”

Reflecting on her career, Jones shared, “Pursuing a music career is a Sisyphean act unlike any other I’ve taken on, but it brings an unmatched joy and purpose to my life, so with this release here I stand rolling that boulder up the hill again.”

Get ready for the release of EUGENIE, which will be available on all major streaming platforms from January 20, 2025. For more information and to stay updated on Jones’ upcoming tour schedule, please visit www.eugeniejones.com.