20

11 tracks.

Recorded while he was still a 20-year-old piano bar junkie in New Orleans, Harry Connick Jr.'s second album sweeps along with a stripped-down, heartfelt flair. This set of mostly unaccompanied piano and vocal music tracks features a variety of jazz standards, often pointing to Connick's Southern heritage. It's no coincidence that the best of these, "Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans," features a slow, sweaty organ solo from Dr. John, guest-appearing here with several other jazz veterans. The presence of such luminaries grounds the young man, producing some of the best work in his entire catalog. Consider the vocal he shares with Carmen McRae on "Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone." The song springs to life on McRae's entrance, and Connick delivers a smooth duet around her familiar vocal colorings, tickling rich accompaniment from a dusty piano. The whimsical quality that Connick often brings to his work is here also, most notably in a touching rendition of "If I Only Had a Brain." Imbuing the Tin Man's lament with low, quiet chords and a warm, vocal treatment could seem silly in another artist's hands. Connick reaches just a little lower and finds the melancholic heart at the song's core. It's a fittingly personal take, from a young man looking to fulfill his own promise and discover his own voice as a musician. --Matthew Cooke

This album seems like it came out a lifetime ago. Connick was destined to become the next James Booker/Thelonious Monk, not a brand-new Frank Sinatra. He arrived in the late 1980s like some kind jazz purist's savior on horseback, only to disappear beneath a stack of overamped blues/funk/rock records and one overrated soundtrack disc. His second disc is easily his best. Less affected, this is more the sound of a talented young man willing to listen to such elders as Dr. John and Carmen McRae, who make welcome cameos here. --Robert Wilonsky