"Like the very best in this game--Sinatra or Tony Bennett--Robinson makes it all sound so effortless on this truly superb vocal jazz outing." -- Dan McClenaghan, All About Jazz

"The rich tone of Robinson is a delight as he takes us on an excursion into the land of legitimate jazz." -- John Gilbert, eJazzNews

Smooth. Emotionally direct. Musically sophisticated. Mark Robinson’s debut recording infuses the Great American Songbook with a sense of discovery and freshness. There’s no moribund reverence here. Just heartfelt renderings of 14 tunes, some familiar (“Embraceable You,” “I’ve Got the World on a String”) and some rescued from relative obscurity (“I Keep Going Back to Joe’s,” “Close Your Eyes”).This is music that’s great for hanging out but that also rewards close listening.

Robinson’s first musical love is jazz standards ­ from Cole Porter and Rodgers & Hart to Elvis Costello and Dave Frishberg. But he began his career at 16 as a classical singer, studying voice and music theory with a San Francisco Ope