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Rick Braun’s been playing trumpet since he was a kid. No news there for the legions of fans his richly melodic playing style has attracted since the release of his first album, Intimate Secrets in 1993. Less known is the fact that he’s been a singer, and a good one (backing Rod Stewart and Sade among others, with vocals as well as his stellar trumpet) for most of his life, as well.

Rick Braun Sings With Strings brings both those skills front and center. And it does so in a way that dips back into the music he’s been captivated by since he first picked up a horn.

“This album,” says Rick, “feels a lot like coming home. I grew up hearing this music all around the house. Singing it, playing it. Listening to my mom, who was a singer and piano player. She was one of those people who knew every part of a song – the verse, the chorus, the refrain, all the lyrics.”

Rick’s not the first trumpet player to match instrumental prowess with engaging vocals. He’s preceded by – among others – Louis Armstrong, Bunny Berigan, Dizzy Gillespie, Roy Eldridge, Chet Baker, Clark Terry and Jack Sheldon. Their range extends from Armstrong’s innovative vocal style to Baker’s extraordinary balladry to Terry’s unique scat singing.

“I’m a big fan of Chet’s,” says Rick, “for both his singing and his playing. I’m much more of an inside player, and my inspirations are minimalist players, like Chet and Miles Davis.” Which isn’t surprising, listening to the airy flugelhorn solos that surround Rick’s vocals on every track.

And that, as much as anything, is what makes this album so fascinating. At a time when the male jazz vocal field has been far too sparsely populated, Rick Braun Sings With Strings makes a convincing case for the arrival of a potential new star of the jazz vocal art.