Lisa Fischer is an intensely interesting vocalist.

I just got back from a dramatic evening of music with Lisa Fischer and Grand Baton.

The setting was intimate and the music was dramatic and sophisticated with both acoustic and electric guitar and bass sets, and a savant drummer laying down complex rhythms that kept us guessing.

But the real intensity hit when Lisa mesmerized us from her first note with a voice that ranged from soft and sensual lows to piercing highs, instantly changing from ferocious to soothing and back again, one moment tearful and the next joyous or humorous, as she took us on an impassioned journey of emotions.

This was not the usual repetitive rock performance delivered over 90 minutes at a single volume.

Nor was it the pretentious jazz that isn’t nearly as interesting to the listener as the performer.

Tonight, we experienced music sourced from a true and deep passion, and it left no doubt that this was much more than a mere pitch-perfect performance.

This was music elevated to a spiritual level that transcended its components.

I feel privileged to have lived it.

-David