Carol Duboc

JazzTimes Magazine- Christopher Loudon - October 2002

"Those who believe that lightening never strikes twice are advised to lend an ear to Carol Duboc's sophmore CD, "DUBOC" (Gold Note). Building on the deserved success of last year's " With All That I Am", Duboc is back with a dozen fresh tracks, including nine new originals, that provide that crystalline voice of hers quite a workout. Demonstrating heightened dexterity, she alternates from Mowtownesque electricity of "This Is No Ordinary Love" and red-hot, discoish fervor of "It's A Feeling"to the country-rock feel of "I Wanna Love Someone" and purposeful naivete of the self-delusional "Secrets". Rounding out this inspired collection are two Bacharach-David covers - a heartbreakingly earnest "Anyone Who Had A Heart" and a perfectly chilled "Walk On By" - and a spicy "El Gaucho" on which Duboc ably evokes the seductive otherworldliness of Lani Hall. "

Don Heckman, LA Times, Sunday, July 28, 2002

Talented singer-songwriter Duboc has followed up her first album, "With All That I Am," with an even more splendid effort. This time out, she has included a healthy sampling of her own well-crafted, pop-jazz-styled originals, written with composers such as John Mitchell, pianist Jeff Lorber and bassist Tony Dumas. She is also surrounded with a powerful collection of players, including Lorber, dumas, keyboardist Patrice Rushen, flutist Hubert Laws, saxophonist Gerald Albright and trumpeter Oscar Brashear.

All this adds up to a performance that refuses to be limited by smooth jazz references. Beyond her fine writing, Duboc's singing has the strength and originality to quickly move her into the top level of jazz vocalists--regardless of genre. The evidence is particularly apparent in the few tunes written by others: a pair of Bacharach-David tunes, "Walk on By" and "Anyone Who Had a Heart," and a spirited romp through Wayne Shorter's "El Gaucho." Still developing as an interpretive performer, still seeking some darker qualities in her vocal timbres, Duboc nonetheless is an artist with enormous possibilities.

Midwest Record Recap
September 2002
by Chris Spector

CAROL DUBOC/Duboc: If you read the small print, you know this songbird has a day job as one of the behind the scenes L.A. top writers and players. With looks and a voice to match the rest of her talent, Duboc flexes her jazzy wings with strength and dignity showing what she learned from all the top soul/jazz session cats she's rubbed elbows with, and they all turn out to lend a golden hand or two on this star powered, chop laden date that will blow your ears off. A solid indy set that more than doesn't deserve to fall through the cracks, check it out.

Los Angeles Times- Don Heckman - August 8, 2002

New female artists have been coming down the pike with startling rapidity since Diana Krall brought new life and soaring profit to the genre of jazz singing.

The most successful have been those who, like Norah Jones and Jane Monheit, have carved out their own musical identities, refusing to be limited by standard definitions.

Southland singer Carol Duboc is taking a similar route. On Monday night at Catalina Bar & Grill, in a performance celebrating the release of her new CD, "Duboc," she convincingly displayed the mainstream jazz phrasing, R&B grooves and Brazilian rhythms that she has been attempting to formulate into a highly personal musical style.

With a five-piece band and two backup singers, Duboc's rendering of such originals as "With All That I Am" (the title song from her first album) and "It's a Feeling" afforded persuasive evidence of her capacity to create material with potentially broad appeal.

In contrast, her versions of Wayne Shorter's "El Gaucho" and Bacharach & David's "Anyone Who Had a Heart" revealed that her crystal-clear voice and warm interpretive skills can produce similarly impressive work in other stylistic areas, with music by other writers....

...Other numbers--enhanced by the stirring flute work of Hubert Laws, who sat in for a few tunes--placed her in a different sort of energetic setting.

Yet despite this battery of sounds, she was most effective when she was singing in the open, free of enveloping textures, and best of all on the rare occasion when she accompanied herself on the piano.

What became clear by the end of her set was the fact that what Duboc needs to take her career to the next level is.... a conclusive answer to the question of whether she can smoothly blend her areas of musical interest...

If she can do so, the sky's the limit.

--Jazziz Magazine July 2002

"Duboc arranged and produced her 2001 debut CD, With All That I Am showcasing jazz veterans Hubert Laws and Gerald Albright. Both return for her new CD, Duboc (Gold Note), along with fellow smooth-jazz luminaries Jeff Lorber and Patrice Russian. Duboc's mesmerizing delivery on the ballad "This Is No Ordinary Love", also proves that this is no ordinary singer"

--Gerald Albright

"The vocals are angelic; the writing is prolific. I am proud to be a part of such a musical project."

--Hubert Laws

"In order to be extraordinary, one has to do extraordinary things....One has to be a leader rather than follow the crowd. Carol Duboc is the epitome of this phenomenon. Working with her on this CD further demonstrates her extraordinary skills."

--R&R magazine July 8, 2002

"Carol Duboc also chimes in with her sultry voice to throw us for a loop on "This Is No Ordinary Love", from her upcoming album Duboc."

--Don Heckman , Los Angeles Times

"Carol Duboc's... debut solo album "With All That I Am" offers an impressive display of versatility...there is no question that singers looking for material may well find something useful in this high-quality collection. But the album also stands well on it's own. Duboc's singing is articulate and precise.... she has good feel for urban-style jazz rhythms, and she wisely has chosen to surround herself with, among others, such first-rate players as Hubert Laws, Gerald Albright and Tony Dumas...."

-- Hubert Laws

" I was first astounded by Carol's very unusual profoundly yet satisfying composing ability. This motivated me to attend one of her live performances where I witnessed her live charismatic vocal performance. I then began to wonder why she has not been recognized by the world as she deserves. She is truly an unsung heroine."

-- Sandy Shore, President , Smoothjazz.com

Smooth Jazz has a new poster girl! Carol Duboc is the real deal -- singer, songwriter, producer and arranger. Sultry, sophisticated vocals with rich instrumentation -- a smart blend of influences.

-- Christopher Loudon , JazzTimes, December 2001 issue.

"Another local phenom, Kansas City-born Carol Duboc is busy carving out an impressive reputation in boītes and bistros throughout the LA area. As a songwriter, arranger and keyboardist Duboc has long been known and respected among the West coast cognoscenti, working behind the scenes in support of such disparate artists as Patti LaBelle, George Duke and Stephanie Mills. Two years ago, she dared to step into the spotlight and go it alone. Now, the gutsy gal from Charlie Parker's hometown takes another daring step with the release of her self-produced debut album, With All That I Am (Gold Note-2021; 56:56). Getting even the most ardent jazz fans to part with cold hard cash for a disc from a new, unproved voice is always a daunting challenge. The stakes become nearly insurmountable if the disc in question isn't loaded with familiar ballads and standards. In Duboc's case, the risk is well worth taking. With a voice like spiced honey, she winds her way through a dozen self-penned tunes that range from palatable to scrumptious. Standouts include the spirited "I Wanna Know," the spiritual "The Promise" and a trippy Caribbean-tinged salute to mood swings called, appropriately enough, "Moody." With All That I Am is the first that most folks will have heard of Carol Duboc. It won't be the last."

-- S.H. Watkins, JazzUSA

Carol Duboc came along at the end of the year and made my 10-best of 2001 list, that's how much I like this release. Her voice is sultry and steady, sometimes evoking the smooth soulfulness of an Anita Baker, other times a vibrant and bouncy songbird a la Dee Dee Bridgewater or Flora Purim. To make it even better Carol wrote or co-wrote ALL of the songs on this marvelous CD. Throw in the sidemen the likes of Hubert Laws and Gerald Albright and you've got one for the ages. The CD starts out with my favorite track, '2nd Nature', where Duboc's smooth vocals are accompanied by the lilting flute lines of Hubert Laws. Back Home is a slow and sultry piece featuring Gerald Albright's warm sax stylings........ 'I Wanna Know' is uptempo with more of a "big" feel to it, again well augmented by Albright's sweet saxology. 'The Promise' follows with more of that same smooth groove. Moody has a distinctively Latin flavor while still having that 'Duboc' feel to it... cool groove. I could go on and on, but suffice it to say that the entire CD is good. As a singer/songwriter musician and arranger Carol has worked with the likes of George Duke, Maurice White, Joe Sample, Hubert Laws, Jeff Lorber, Stephanie Mills and Chante Moore, so it's no wonder that her debut CD is so together. There are no duds here, and I'm glad Carol Duboc has come into my musical life.

-- Richard Bourcier , Jazzreview.com

Here's something very nice for Smooth Jazz fans. Writer/ vocalist Carol Duboc's new release sold out at smoothjazz.com within the first month of issue. Now based in Los Angeles, the Kansas City born songwriter exhibits a dozen of her original compositions on this CD. The multi-talented Duboc is also responsible for all the string arrangements. Her tasty vocals lend themselves perfectly to the smooth-jazz style. Soloists include Hubert Laws, Gerald Albright and others. The fine piano of Patrick Moten is outstanding. Although all tracks are very good, I really enjoyed 'The Promise', 'Moody' and the up-tempo 'Soon'. This young talent deserves your attention.

-- Steve "The Jazz Man" The Jazz Artists Network

"Finally....someone has come to bend the ears of smooth jazz lovers with a sugary and sultry elegance that is needed! Carol Duboc is what we had in mind when we talked to the magic genie but we couldn't find the words to describe her."

-- Mainstream U.S.A. "Jazz, Reggae & Blues

"Carol Duboc at Lunaria Restaurant... When I walked in Lunaria Restaurant last night, I had no idea the level of show I was about to experience. Carol Duboc is a very sexy singer with a smooth sultry voice, and her band is as good as it gets. Darrell Smith on Keyboards, John Leftwich on bass, Wayne Johnson on guitar and Land Richards on drums. To top it off, the second set Hubert Laws came up and joined Carol on a song entitled "Second Nature". Fabulous! What a treat. Carol writes all of the songs, and it became apparent, by the second set, that she is a great musician as well. While she is very attractive, this is not your typical blonde singer. There were so many great songs, but I believe that my favorites were "With All That I Am", "All I Need", and "My Inspiration". Where has this girl been?"