The new recording, Flying High—Still Soaring, the latest project from Champian Fulton, is a follow-up to her 2024 album, Flying High—Big Band Canaries Who Soared. This last album just scratched the surface of the incredible treasure trove of songs bequeathed to the world by band singers—an army of vocalists that fronted big bands on the road for decades, touring the country and sowing the seeds of swing in cities and towns near and far. Together they created a sturdy and satisfying chapter of the Great American Songbook that blooms and blossoms to this day.
Fulton is once again the driving force behind this newest album, choosing songs, picking guest stars, playing piano, and arranging. Her talent, her taste, her wit, and her spirit sparkle throughout. Her trio is actually two trios—with tracks featuring Neal Miner on bass and Fukushi Tainaka on drums, alternating with Buster Williams on bass and Charles Ruggiero on drums. The music-making is of the highest order regardless of the lineup. Klas Lindquist shines on sax and clarinet, managing to recall the sound and feel of the Big Band era.
Champian Fulton (Photo: Margherita Andreani)
The recording opens with the classic “S’posin’” (Paul Denniker, Andy Razaf) featuring Bria Skonberg on vocals and trumpet; her smokey, rapid fire vocals are perfect, and perfectly paired with her muted trumpet’s infectious swing, all cushioned by Champian Fulton’s fantastic piano. Skonberg’s trumpet wraps seductively around the pulsing melody of “It’s Been a Long Long Time” (Jule Styne, Sammy Cahn) and her insinuating vocals give the warhorse a pleasing immediacy. Tahira Clayton grabs “Good Morning Heartache” (Irene Higginbotham, Dan Fisher, Ervin Drake) and makes it her own, unbowed by countless earlier versions; her passionate vocals are bolstered by Lindquist’s stirring saxophone. Neal Miner’s bass adds appropriate moodiness to the proceedings. Clayton later dusts off the heartache and dives into “Swing! Brother, Swing!” (Clarence Williams, Lewis Raymond, Walter Bishop, Sr.) with gusto and hard-won control.
The classic “What a Little Moonlight Can Do” (Harry M. Woods) is resurrected, cobwebs blown away, by the slow swing attack provided by the great Carmen Bradford. Of all the guests on the recording, she is the bridge to the Big Band era. I count myself lucky that back in the day I got to see her a few times in her role as band singer for the Basie Band, and she has lost none of her vocal grandeur. Tainaka’s drums ground her vocals in a slow burn swing that raises the temperature on her incendiary version, as Fulton’s piano fans the flames of romance even more. And when the flames burst, so does the tempo. Bradford then goes deep and pulsing with a hauntingly strong “Lullaby of the Leaves” (Bernice Petkere, Joe Young), spiced with some heated scat.
New York’s Nicole Zuraitis is the final guest on the album with “Sentimental Journey” (Les Brown, Ben Horner, Bud Green), eschewing Doris Day’s eager innocence for a world-weary, ever-so-slightly desperate, lived-in swing that suits the song well, especially in 2026, and the hard-edged piano is perfect. Fulton graces the recording with two vocals as well. The first is an irresistible singer-pianist turn on “Just for a Thrill” (Lil Hardin Armstrong,, Don Raye) with a fantastic piano solo centering the whole thing. Williams and Ruggiero communicate with her as one, the way it should be. “Do It Again,” written in 1922 by George Gershwin and Buddy DeSylva, lets a bit of vaudeville leaven the jazz as Fulton has a ball with the “risqué” lyrics and Lindquist lets loose with some sizzling horn work. Lastly, he and the pianist share an intimate conversation as only two consummate musicians can have on “If Dreams Come True” (Edgar Sampson, Benny Goodman, Irving Mills).
There’s an overused phrase which nonetheless applies to Champian Fulton’s Flying High: Still Soaring: This may be the “feel good album” of 2026. It flies by and its pleasures just increase with each listen.
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Flying High–Still Soaring: Executive produced by Suzanne Waldowski; produced by Songbook Ink in partnership with Jazz at the Ballroom on Songbook Ink Records.
Gerry Geddes, critic for BistroAwards.com, is an award-winning director, writer, teacher, performer, lyricist, and a contributor to the podcast Troubadours and Raconteurs. He conceived and directed the acclaimed musical revues Monday in the Dark with George (Bistro and MAC Award winner), Put on Your Saturday Suit—Words & Music by Jimmy Webb, and Gerry Geddes & Company (in its five-year residency at Pangea). He has directed singers André De Shields, Darius de Haas, Helen Baldassare, and Lisa Viggiano. He has been active in the cabaret world for over five decades and has produced numerous CDs; his lyrics have been performed and recorded here and in Europe. Gerry’s workshop, The Art of Vocal Performance, is regularly offered to singers of all levels. His memoir of life in NYC, Didn’t I Ever Tell You This?, was recently published and is available at barnesandnoble.com. He is currently at work on his first novel.
