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Just What the Doctor Ordered

Right away, with "Esperanza" (hope, in Spanish), you'll be swept away with Allison's lovely voice, the impeccably produced instrumentation and positive messages in the lyrics. All three tunes, in fact, offer these ingredients.

Instrumental excellence also translates to tasteful production: nothing is ever overplayed. The sax solos and Allison's voice are the anchors, with excellent vocal support from Victor Martin. What needs to be out front is out front, what needs to be in the background is less audible. Very well done.

Each tune is sublimely relaxing, yet quite danceable. Soothing, yet energizing in a positive way. This is truly high quality feel-good music at its best. Just what the doctor ordered!
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The Tranquil Vibes of Allison and Vibes

Allison Scull and Victor Martin are seated
at a table near the spot where they typically
perform at the Post Office Saloon in
downtown Redding. On this afternoon,
however, there’s not a guitar or saxophone in sight.
No microphones are set up to welcome
the duo into their usual position.

Still, bar patrons know who they are.

“They’re adored here in the North
State,” says Reggie Bordsen with a tone that
indicates that he means business. “Everybody
loves them. They really do.”

Bordsen raves on about Martin’s sax
playing, and calls Scull’s voice “angelic.”

Martin makes a wisecrack about paying
off fans to say the right things at the right
moments, then lets loose with a booming
infectious laugh. Just a bit later, another
musician walks into the pub and beams upon
seeing Martin and Scull. He hurries over for a
hug and pleasantries.

Martin and Scull tend to have this effect
on people. The same scene could have
unfolded in a lot of places they perform –
Napa, Weaverville, Grants Pass, Ore., Mount
Shasta, Hayfork.

Known (and booked) as simply “Allison
and Victor,” the duo has performed
consistently across the region since 2002.
They’ve played a vast array of venues and
events, from club shows to private parties
to winery open houses and everything else
you can think of. They’ve graced the stage
of the Cascade Theatre (opening for the
Blind Boys of Alabama), and performed in
an expanded format in August at the Trinity
Alps Performing Arts Center.

Their sound blends elements of folk, jazz,
blues, European and Latin music, all of
which translates into a laid-back, tranquil
vibe that tends to put people at ease.

“If you’re putting your heart and soul into
it, I think audiences pick up on that,” says
Martin. “When we look up and see people
smiling and having a good time, it’s feels like
we’re doing our part to bring a little peace
into the world. Live music is such a powerful
healing force. It’s medicine.”

December saw the duo release a new
album, “Cool Like the Breeze,” which
features six songs written by Scull (including
the title track), one by Martin, and two
others. The album was recorded by Ron
Davis (sound engineer for the Monterey
Jazz Festival) at his Wing and a Prayer
Production studio in Central Point, Ore.

Martin arranged all of the tunes and
the album features a variety of musicians,
including pianist Grant Levin, drummer
Tom Stamper, bassists Bill Vallaire and Glenn
Richman and percussionist Theresa Mc Coy?.

“We’re excited to get the CD out and
share it with the world,” says Scull. “We were
able to get the fuller sound we were after
with a very talented crew of musicians and an
excellent recording engineer.”

Adds Martin: “We worked hard to expand
the sound, but keep the integrity we started
with. We broadened the scope. It’s richer and
bigger.”

A native of Delaware, Martin began
playing saxophone in junior high and
continued his studies through college at
the Wilmington School of Music. After
joining the Army, he toured in a rock band
while stationed in Fort Lewis, Wash. Over
the years, he’s performed with the likes of
Grammy-winner Joe Henderson, Kitty
Margolis and Curtis Salgado.

Scull, a twin, came from a Navy family and
spent her childhood living in either Belgium
or La Jolla, Calif. A choir class at the San
Diego School of Performing Arts helped
spur her passion for music.

In 1998, Martin saw Scull performing her
original tunes at the Nutglade Station in
Dunsmuir and was impressed. Later, Scull
asked Martin to play on her 1998 solo CD,
“Allison St.”

It wasn’t long before they began performing
together, with Scull’s songwriting and
acoustic guitar style making for a cohesive fit
with Martin’s jazz sensibilities. Martin also
sings harmony and lead on some tunes, and
plays percussion.

“The cool thing about Vic is he’s open minded
enough to think of a singersongwriter
as a choice to do music with,”
Scull says. “We have so much fun when we
play. We love the audience interaction. Each
night, the energy of the crowd makes for a
different experience.”

In addition to the new album (available
at live shows and on their website –
allisonandvictor.com), the duo has also
released “Allison Scull and Victor Martin
Live” (2006) and “From the Back Burner”
(2002). They’ve shared the stage with the
likes of Craig Chaquico, Shana Morrison,
Archie Lee Hooker, Kelly Joe Phelps and
blues legend John Hammond.

When Scull and Martin travel to perform,
they often stay with fans who have grown
into close friends over the years. It’s a
continuation of the afternoon experience at
the Post Office Saloon.

“When we’re on the road, we feel little
bits of home,” Scull says. “We’ve built these
little networks with people, and these people
pretty much make it possible for us to do
this.”

“You find out that a lot of people out there
in the world are good,” adds Martin.
Or, perhaps it’s Martin and Scull who
continually bring out the good in people.
Either way, it continues to be a sweet sound.•

Catch their CD release party on
Friday, January 29th,
at Vintage Wine Bar,
1790 Market St. Redding, CA
and see them again at Vintage on Valentine's Day.
Sunday, February 14th.

Allison Scull and Victor Martin

The Dunsmuir, Calif., duo has been performing together for nearly 10 years, blending jazz and folk with Latin and European elements, and occasional French lyrics.

"Cool Like the Breeze," released in January, features Scull's guitar and vocal stylings and Martin's saxophone chops as well as the musicianship of several Southern Oregonians, including drummer Tom Stamper, percussionist Theresa Mc Coy?, pianist Ford Sterling and bassist Jeff Addicott.

“I think it (the album) shows (our) maturity as writers and arrangers,” says Martin.

The album features seven original tunes and two covers — "Miss Celie's Blues," first heard in the movie "The Color Purple," and "Summertime," by George Gershwin.

"Cool Like the Breeze," is the duo's third album and contains more piano, electric bass and jazzier arrangements than their previous two albums, "From the Back Burner" (2002) and "Allison Scull and Victor Martin Live" (2006).

"It's a fairly laid back sound," says Scull. "It's a mix of upbeat and melancholy."

Scull says her musical career started with singing to Joni Mitchell and Cat Stevens tunes around the house. Scull, who tended more toward folk, attended the San Diego School of Performing Arts and later, she asked Martin, who had seen her perform, to play saxophone in the song “Mirror Me, Mirror You” on her first album, "Allison St."

Victor's lifelong love affair with jazz began when his mother gave him a sax. He decided to play trumpet instead, thinking three keys would be easier, but when that theory proved false, he returned to the sax. He attended Wilmington School of Music in Delaware before joining the army and playing with the 9th Infantry Rock Band stationed at Fort Lewis, Wash. He also played in the R&B band Sound Advice and in a jazz duo with Rick Garrett.

Victor and Scull have decided to dedicate their Avalon show to the late Jim Calhoun, who accompanied them on their album, “From the Back Burner.” Cover for the show is $5. For more information, call 541-512-8864.

Guitar and saxophone? Jazz, right? What if we add acoustic guitar and vocals? Folk, maybe?

That is the challenge facing Allison Scull and Victor Martin ---- just what do you call their music?

"Magical" would be a good place to start. Martin's warm tenor sax provides a surprisingly complementary foil to Scull's folky guitar and vocals.

We"ve heard that combo before, of course: Al Stewart's mid-1970s hits "Year of the Cat" and "Time Passages" both featured saxophone solos, as did Gerry Rafferty"s "Baker Street."

But what makes this different is that Martin remains firmly ensconced in the jazz idiom in his playing; he's not playing R&B a la Clarence Clemons behind Bruce Springsteen ---- he's playing jazz saxophone as accompaniment to Scull"s folk guitar and singing.

And it works.

It"s not all Martin, obviously. The reason his jazz lines work so well with Scull's folk approach is that her guitar playing is lithe and complex, much more so than that of most folkies, and able to serve as foil for his sax passages.

Their second release, "Live," was recorded in front of an appreciative audience in Northern California and with the addition of percussion and bass to fill out the sound.

As with their 2002 debut, "From the Back Burner," "Live" finds the duo playing mostly original songs written by Scull with a few covers. And as with their debut, it is the original songs that provide the most memorable moments. There's nothing wrong about their covers of Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time," Bob Marley's "Waiting in Vain" or Antonio Carlos Jobim's "Corcovado" ---- but these are songs that have been covered to death.

It's on songs like "Esperanza," or "My Room," or "Sugar Mama" that we hear the magic that is Allison and Victor, that we hear the interplay between two musicians, one folk and one jazz, who share a creative wavelength.

Allison Scull and Victor Martin perform at Beaumont's in Bird Rock at 8:30 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. Sunday

There with Allison and Victor, January 7, 2006

The first time you listen to Allison Scull & Victor Martin Live you’re in for a treat. And the second time. And the third. And every time.

This CD is one of those timeless recordings that will withstand repeated playing for many, many years. Why? Because the two musicians who created it—and those musicians who’ve joined them—are just that: Musicians … skilled musicians for whom music is their life, a passion, a way of expressing themselves and not a fast road to fame and riches.

Allison Scull has a luminous, brilliant voice that ranges from earthy contralto to crystalline soprano effortlessly. In fact, all of her singing feels completely effortless, never forced, never strained.

Allison’s guitar playing is as skillful as her singing. It’s subtle and never overpowers her singing because—while Allison does play guitar—her voice is her instrument that she commands with great talent.

Although it appears Victor Martin plays the sax, he doesn’t really. He paints colorful soundscapes with it … using a few, clear brush strokes to create his musical images, not the muddied, frenetic onslaught of noise all too often associated with the saxophone.

The blending of Allison and Victor’s voices when they sing in duet is magical. Victor usually remains in the background for his vocals, his resonant voice providing true counterpoint (learned through years of jazz musicianship) for Allison’s lead.

But when Victor takes the vocal lead as on Bob Marley’s Waiting in Vain, he does so with authority and command … and with a phrasing that’s been uniquely shaped by his years of playing jazz saxophone.

Intimacy. That’s what is so compelling about this CD. Allison and Victor make you feel as if they’re singing just to you. But in spite of the quiet, reserved approach these two outstanding musicians take, the music never slips into becoming background music. There’s an urgency about the compositions and arrangements that captures the listener’s attention.

The play list features a near even blend of Allison’s original compositions and covers arranged by Victor. But the covers bring new sensibility and power, so you feel as if you’re hearing them for the first time.

But if you’re trying to pin a genre onto this CD … good luck.
There is a distinct Latin flavor, but the CD takes inspiration from all over the world. My Room vibrates with a definite Middle Eastern essence. And Allison’s rendition of Autumn Leaves makes you feel like you’re sitting in a dusky, smoky French cabaret, while Corcovado will whisk you to the nightclubs of Rio.

Jazz? Yes, some of the CD is jazz. Folk? Indeed, it’s folk as well. And it’s Latin, reggae, pop, and so much more.

But it isn’t like one song is folk and the next jazz. Every song combines elements of different genres seamlessly into a genre that’s uniquely Allison and Victor.

A CD of this quality comes about only from the effort of many people. Allison and Victor are joined by Bill Vallaire on bass, Joe Furnari on congas, and Vic’s longtime partner Rick Garrison on guitar for Corcovado and Autumn Leaves.

Ron Davis recorded the CD live at Rare Images in Mount Shasta, California. He also mixed and mastered the CD at A Wing and a Prayer Productions in Central Point, Oregon. Tyler Davis was assistant sound engineer.

The only problem with the CD is that it’s a live album … and I wasn’t able to be there to experience the excitement of the recording session in person. However, there is magic in this CD, a magic that makes you feel like you are there with Allison and Victor.

Will Newman

Area Musicians Offer Rich Releases

Mount Shasta singer-songwriters Allison Scull and Victor Martin have been finding a blend of laid-back folk and jazz for years in the north state. They captured an inspired evening of their work in this new CD recorded at Rare Images Gallery in Mount Shasta.

Five of the nine tunes on the album are written by Scull, whose warm, sincere voice intertwines with Martin’s clear, tasty saxophone leads. Martin also shows his vocal prowess on somber-sweet version of Bob Marley’s "Waiting in Vain." Another highlight is the duo’s cover of Cyndi Lauper’s "Time After Time."

Of Scull’s songs, driving "My Room" soars for nearly seven minutes to become perhaps the CD’s strongest track. It’s followed by "Sugar Mama," a fun tune that reveals Scull and Martin’s happy banter with their audience.

Bassist Bill Vallaire, conga player Joe Furnari and guitarist Rick Garrett assist on the performance.

The record is an excellent grab for those who have enjoyed Scull and Martin’s live shows.

CD Review: From the Back Burner

CD and Artist Review

One listen to her debut CD, "Allison St." and you'll come to understand why. The songs on "Allison St." were written during an eight year span beginning in 1990 and recorded in Ashland, Oregon in 1998. "Allison St.", named after an actual street in Ashland where Scull went to college, is comprised of 10 songs-and are absolute gems. By combining different instruments (bouzooki, dhotar, congas, ragtime banjo, and saxophone) Scull has built a bridge between traditional and acoustic music, light rock and jazz. The results are truly startling. The music, skillfully guided by Scull's deft and delicate voice, calls to mind the young Mary Travers.

When Victor Martin began playing music as a youngster, he originally passed up the saxophone "because it had too many keys." He chose the trumpet instead (it has only three keys), but soon he found himself unable to play it. Discouraged, intent on giving up the study of music altogether, Victor was handed a saxophone by his mother who demanded he stay in the school band. Thirty years later, Martin has become one of the accomplished horn players in Northern California.

Martin is featured on "Allison St. " and has been playing with Scull for almost 3 years. Tall and muscular, he blends the physical stature of King Curtis with the range of the late, great session man Steve Douglas.

Aside from playing with Scull, Martin contributed regularly to the Mount Shasta R&B band "Sound Advice." He also played alongside Grammy award winning saxophonist Joe Henderson at the Sacramento River Jazz Festival in 1992, a concert he regards as a high-point in his career.

Trinity's Lively Arts

In Siskiyou County, the City of Dunsmuir is a place that basically grew on the side of a mountain slope near the Sacramento River because of the railroad switchyard existed. There, Allison Scull and Victor Martin found a home base from which to travel to various gigs around the North State, across the nation, and especially to come here to be a part of Trinity's lively arts.

Allison had a dream from an early age to write and perform and publish her own neo-folk songs. That dream came true when she published her first CD "Alllison St" in 1998. About that time she met Victor Martin and invited him to play backup sax for one of the songs on the album. Soon they were performing their jazzy folk blues to audiences regularly.

The first time I saw them perform was at the Straw House in Big Flat, CA on September 2, (2004). The next night they performed on the deck of Noelle's Garden's Cafe. Some of the numbers they did were from their new album "From the Back Burner." Allison wrote most of the songs and she sang and played guitar throughout. Victor's voice and sax added depth and balance to the numbers. Sometimes in the duets, their voices were so matched the effect was as one. When Allison sings in close harmony or unison with the sax, it is incredible. Dinner on the deck with live entertainment. It can't get any better.

I was privileged to have them stay over at my home, to relax and talk with them over breakfast. While Victor worked with his new sax, Allison shared with me a bit of her process of writing a song. The day before while they were setting up at the Straw House, she had a little time so took the opportunity to sit by the river with her guitar.

She started playing with a melody that they had been working on but she hadn't come up with the exact lyrics. I imagine that day, the surroundings, the quiet flow of the river, any of which could inspire her, did and she said that as she sat there playing, her thought went back to her childhood. Images came flooding through and the words and phrasing fell into place and she had a song. It's not always that easy, but if you talk to any artist, you will find out that this is often the way it happens when they do their best work. Pure inspiration.

Allison and Victor had five gigs over Labor Day weekend. Here(Trinity County), Ashland, Oregon, and the Mount Shasta Blackberry Festival. You can see more about this hardworking duo on the Internet. In search just type, Allison Scull and Victor Martin and go.