This came out in 2003 – or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
WHO HE IS: The up-and-coming Vancouver crooner and pianist whose butterscotch vocal tones and velvet touch recall sophisticated predecessors such as Nat King Cole and Johnny Hartman.
WHAT THIS IS: Though not his first album, Sinclaire’s self-titled Verve Records debut is undeniably a first-rate effort that showcases not only his impressive vocal chops but also his developing songwriting skills. Classics like Day In Day Out, Exactly Like You, Where or When and Be My Love pay reverent tribute to the past, while originals such as the zippy Tofu and Greens and the playful Art of Living make it clear he’s more than just some tribute act. CD centrepiece I Got Rhythm bridges this stylistic and generational gulf most effectively, flowing from a scracthy old rendition of the Gershwin chestnut into a contemporary soul version incorporating the opening lick of Jimi Hendrix’s The Wind Cries Mary.
