‘The songs of Stevie Wonder have inspired a generation of jazz musicians. Singers, awed by his vocal abandon, generally keep a respectful distance but true devotees are beginning to declare themselves, and none more lovingly than Orla Murphy. Tall and tender, with a deep well of bittersweet Irish blues in her voice, the Belfast-born diva delivers 10 Stevie classics with real feeling and a laid-back elegance. Visions, Big Brother and Too High (a prophetic epitaph for Amy Winehouse and Whitney Houston) are particularly fine, and her own song, Timeless, is a neat overview of her mentor’s career. Her group catches the spirit, particularly pianists Jonathan Gee, Aron Ottignon and bassist Andy Hamill, whose soulful harmonica solo on Visions is truly a thing of Wonder.’
JACK MASSARIK, London's Evening Standard, 9th March 2012
'Orla's dark rich voice is a breath of fresh air for me, with so many female Vocalists trying to break into the jazz scene...Her voice is a great mixture of soul, jazz and blues...a dark brown voice...the more I listen to this album, the better it gets...' Brian Soundy's showcase of 'Wonderous Visions' on UK Jazz Radio (October 2011).
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Orla Murphy is a talented London-based Jazz Vocalist. Her voice has been described as possessing a distinctive, rich sound with a deep and soulful timbre; and often comparisons are made with great Jazz Vocalists Nina Simone, Cleo Laine, and Diana Krall.
Orla performs regularly at various jazz and music venues throughout London and the United Kingdom. She has worked and recorded with many of London’s leading jazz musicians, some of which feature on her forthcoming second album ‘Wonderous Visions’, which was officially released in the UK on the 6th March 2012. This will be followed by a UK tour in June 2012. The album is a presentation of new jazz arrangements and re-workings of Stevie Wonder songs, chosen from his works mainly from the 1970s (his classic period). Several other songs from outside this period are featured on the album, plus an original, written by Orla and accomplished pianist Steve Lodder.
Orla has also performed at various International festivals throughout the UK and Ireland, in Glasgow, Derry, and Sligo; and at jazz venues in her native Ireland, Scotland, and Wales; as well as performing in Italy and Malaysia.
In 2008, Orla toured England with her trio, funded by Jazz Services, and this coincided with the release of her debut album 'Wishful Thinking' (2008) on FMR Records on the 1st May 2008. The tour was well received and garnered much praise from audiences throughout the country.
Born and raised in Belfast, Northern Ireland, Orla’s interest in jazz was fuelled by the plethora of great jazz musicians that performed at her late father’s bar and music room ‘The Bridge’, during the early to mid-1990s. The venue played host to local, national and international jazz musicians such as Paul Dunmall, Jean Touissant and Hugh Fraser. It was around this time that her interest and love of jazz began, and so too her quest to pursue a career as a Jazz Vocalist.
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http://orlamurphy.net
