Bonnie J Jensen - Rise

The Australian N/P Review - 18-19 October 2025. Wr

21 October 2025

A high-flyer in Sydney's jazz scene, Bonnie J Jensen is justly celebrated for her spirit and daring. With her deep, powerfully athletic vocals and true gift at songwriting, she is a class live act. Being handy on piano helps as well. Jensen's fifth album showcases all of this in ample measure. Her newly penned Hughes' Blues and Spend a Little Time with Me celebrate the Big Band era with infectious swing and cruisy style. There is a wonderful bite in her singing, and she is joined by a dozen of Sydney's most accomplished jazz instrumentalists in a highly eclectic song-list. Graeham Goble's Reminiscing, Nitin Sawhney's Immigrant and Herbie Hancock's Cantaloupe Island each really catch fire. All the arrangements - written by Jensen alongside Andrew Robertson and Graham Jesse - are excellent. Curtis Reginald Lewis's The Great City and Chick Corea's Spain are two other standouts that keep the mood kicking along very nicely. Terrific solo performances grace this whole collection. Driven by passion, RISE has all the sweaty intimacy of a live show, and comes highly recommended.

(5)

Allen Michie - The Arts Fuse - Boston's Premier On

28 August 2025

"Bonnie J Jensen is a familiar singer on the Australian scene with the cred to pull together some of the country’s best jazz musicians for her records. Her fifth, RISE has a mixture of small combos and a big band, some originals, and an imaginative selection of covers. Jensen doesn’t scat. Instead, she emphasizes storytelling and accentuates the rhythms embedded in the melodies without any excessive theatrics. She is also a fine composer and arranger with an ear for colours and a feel for the blues. It’s not an ambitious album destined to be a ground-breaking classic, but it sticks to your ribs. I especially liked the selection of covers. The album opens with a slinky vamp version of Stylistics’ “People Make the World Go Round,” a song jazzed by Freddie Hubbard and Milt Jackson. There’s also a sleepy take on James Taylor’s “Don’t Let Me Be Lonely Tonight.” Jensen lets the strength of the composition do its magic. The cover of Sting’s “La Belle Dame Sans Regrets” (thank you for not choosing one of Sting’s overplayed songs) is a mid-tempo samba. The best of the pop covers is the Little River Band’s “Reminiscing". It makes you wonder why this one hasn’t been covered by jazz musicians many times before. It’s a lovely melody with a built-in relaxed swing, and the lyrics are charming (complete with a shout-out to the Glenn Miller band). The arrangement here adds some rich harmonies, but nothing is done to mess with the simple appeal of the original. Jensen doesn’t sound like a young girl with a bird-like voice who wouldn’t be able to sell a song like this. You’ll find other covers from Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, and Michael Franks on this fine release from an up-and-comer from down under."

(4)

Jonathan Widran - The JW VIBE, USA

26 August 2025

“A sultry, multi-genre talent whose sense of invention knows few bounds and gleefully hops barriers between pop, jazz, Latin and soul, Australian songstress, premier, vocal interpreter and songwriter Bonnie J Jensen has a curious discography. After gracing the world with four acclaimed album in the 2000s, she stayed silent on the recording front for nearly 15 years – then unleashed an incredible, wildly eclectic flurry of eight lead singles leading up to her grand comeback album with the resurrection-appropriate title RISE. A premier showcase for Jensen’s effortless soulful delivery, colorful phrasing and equal aplomb for hushed intimacy and lively swing, the collection featuring two compelling originals and hip and stylish, artfully arranged re-imaginings of classics by everyone from Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock and Sting to Little River Band, James Taylor, Michael Franks and The Stylistics. On the strictly jazz side, the highlights are an expansive, mood swinging 7-minute romp through Corea’s “Spain,” highlighted by her peppy, whimsical duet with flutist/multi-instrumentalist Graham Jesse on the percussive passages; and a dreamy swirl through Hancock’s “Butterfly,” which eases effortlessly from punchy to soothing, with ample time for snazzy solo improvisations by Jesse (on alto flute) and pianist Matt McMahon. On the pop/soul side, Jensen turns familiar tunes like “People Make the World Go Round,” “Reminiscing” and “Don’t Let Me Be Lonely Tonight” into fresh social and romantic revelations while also tackling the intoxicating Sting deep cut “La Belle Dame Sans Regrets” to share her facility for French language singing. In addition to her stirring and seductive original “Hughes’ Blues,” the album’s greatest strength is the cool yet empowering way she brings lesser-known gems like the Nancy Wilson chestnut “The Great City” and Nitin Sawhney’s “Immigrant” to brilliant life, sharing timeless messages that resonate even more now."

(5)

Des Cowley - Rhythms Magazine, Australia

26 August 2025

"Singer Bonnie J Jensen has cast her net widely with fifth outing RISE. New Zealand born, but Sydney-based, her work stands out – over and above her vocal prowess – for the calibre of musicians she’s routinely mustered to enrich her records, including Alister Spence, Miroslav Bukovsky, James Morrison, Jonathan Zwartz, James Muller, Phil Stack. RISE continues the tradition, boasting standout contributions from pianist Matt McMahon, guitarist Geoff Hughes, bassist Brett Hirst, drummer Nicholas McBride, among others. From the get-go, there’s a carefree, relaxed flow about this music, highlighting Jensen’s sultry vocals, and her capacity for putting a new spin on well-trod standards. These strengths come to the fore on the album’s penultimate track, Herbie Hancock’s ‘Butterfly’ (with lyrics by his sister Jean). McMahon’s lush piano, overlaid by Graham Jesse’s flute, manifests a neo soul vibe, with Jensen’s voice, smooth as silk, drifting and gliding across the song’s melancholic undercurrent. She further expands the Hancock tie-in with a rendition of his classic ‘Cantaloupe Island’, featuring lyrics by Mark Murphy. Vaunting a full band arrangement, Graham Jesse’s ‘in the pocket’ arrangement is elevated by McMahon’s laconic piano vamp, and Simon Ferenci’s smouldering trumpet. Jensen proves herself amenable to injecting a touch of swing to proceedings, heard to best effect on Curtis Lewis’s ‘The Great City’, which conjures Joni Mitchell’s spirited and playful cover of the Wardell Gray/Annie Ross vocalese ‘Twisted’, replete with Jensen’s sassy vocals, and Ray Cassar’s muted trumpet. She reprises the mood on her own composition ‘Spend a Little Time with Me’, wrapping her vocals around the song’s brassy theme, as she stretches and collapses the song’s lyrics. Sting’s ‘La Belle Dame Sans Regret’, on the other hand, with its hip Latin backbeat, is given a chanteuse makeover that could have been lifted straight from a nouvelle vague sixties film. Arguably the pick-of-the-bunch is Jensen’s seven-minute take on Chick Corea’s ‘Spain’, a rollercoaster ride that finds her trickily navigating the song’s complex rhythms, which careen wildly between plaintive and ebullient. The album closes with James Taylor’s ‘Don’t Let Me be Lonely Tonight’, with Jensen proffering a mellow and cruisy reading that amplifies the song’s late-night, sad-eyed wistfulness. While RISE is enhanced by cool and snazzy arrangements, Jensen is first and foremost a singer and interpreter. Steering clear of the pyrotechnic scatting of traditional jazz singers such as Ella Fitzgerald, her approach is foregrounded in the art of song-craft, mining a rich seam of jazz vocals embodied by the likes of Holly Cole, Claire Martin, Diana Krall, and Patricia Barber. On the evidence of RISE, Jensen warrants being cited in their company."

(5)

Michael Friedman, Skope Magazine, USA

25 August 2025

Veteran jazz vocalist Bonnie J Jensen makes a long-overdue comeback with “RISE”, her fifth solo album and her first since 2010’s “SHIMMER.” Consisting of some classic jazz standards mixed in with reinterpretations of music from other genres, RISE is the work of a jazz vocalist entirely at ease with her craft, yet eager to stretch her artistry in new directions. The album’s repertoire is as eclectic as it is cohesive, as Jensen kicks things off by bringing some swing and breathing life into The Stylistics’ 1971 soul hit “People Make the World go Round.” She moves fluidly between intriguing reinterpretations and paying homage to great modern jazz composers with her takes on Herbie Hancock’s “Butterfly” and “Cantaloupe Island.” Even among the jazz standards, Jensen keeps things fresh by blending in unique singles like Chick Corea’s “Spain,” which serves as an epic centrepiece. With a runtime exceeding seven minutes, this is a great track to showcase her lyrical agility and musicianship. One of the highlights on this album is Jensen’s smooth jazz cover of Sting’s “La Belle Dame Sans Regrets.” Her soft vocals add a level of depth and dimension that transcends the original, while the sax solos are a tasteful addition that elevate the atmosphere. The album closes out with an incredible rendition of James Taylor’s “Don’t Let me Be Lonely Tonight.” matching the emotional impact of the original is a tough ask, but Jensen proves she’s up to the task with a powerful performance that brings tears to your eyes. In these twelve tracks, Jensen draws on a handpicked roster of Australia’s finest jazz musicians; Matt McMahon on piano, Geoff Hughes on guitar, Ray Cassar on trumpet, Graham Jesse on saxophone and flute, Brett Hirst on bass, and Nicholas McBride on drums. Together, they craft a record of remarkable polish, depth, and variety. Jensen produces this album herself, and it’s clear she knows exactly how to frame her instrument. The ensemble shifts from dining-room intimacy to full big-band punch without losing the album’s through-line of elegance. There’s an unhurried confidence in the way the record unfolds, with the musicians giving each song the space it needs. “RISE” is a record steeped in tradition yet unafraid to take detours. It’s a collection that rewards close listening as much as it works as a late-night companion. In her return to the studio, Bonnie J Jensen hasn’t just picked up where she left off. She’s delivered one of her most accomplished statements to date."

(5)