Praised by Billboard Magazine as "a singer with exciting vocal ability," singer/songwriter Laury Shelley broke onto the international music scene at age 19, when she was discovered by Oscar and Grammy Award-winning composer Michel Legrand, who called her "a very talented singer."

 

Following her time with Legrand, Laury went on to perform at some of the nation's top clubs, concert halls and music festivals including LA's Cinegrill and The Gardenia, New York City's Metropolitan Room, Milwaukee's Summerfest, Chicago's Jazz Showcase and the Chicago Jazz Festival.

 

Hailed as "a possessor of an incredible vocal instrument," by Grammy Award nominee and  pop and jazz music critic Mort Goode, Laury's debut solo recording Pieces of Dreams received critical acclaim, international airplay. The accolades that included being named "Artist of the Month" by Chicago’s Smooth 87.7FM and a nationally televised performance on the CW/WGN America's Midday Show.

 

Her new recording Time Is A Healer, released in 2018, covers a variety of genres: soul, r & b, funk, jazz, adult contemporary and pop power ballads A cornerstone of the album is a homage to her mentor and past work with Michel Legrand. Laury's electrifying, funk-tinged, version of the Oscar-winning The Windmills of Your Mind, the album's first single. Upon release, it elicited excitement from radio programmers across the globe. Russ Davis of New York's MOJA Radio called it "fine work from one of the great singers around today" while Voice of America Radio said, "Laury Shelley sings the heck out of this!"  In it's first week the song made iTunes Top 100 Jazz releases.

 

However, the album marks the emergence of a major artist. A showcase, not only of Laury's musical versatility and amazing vocals, Time Is A Healer illustrates her gifts as a songwriter and arranger. Five of the tracks were written by Laury, including the title song, In The Rain and It's Not The Way It Used To Be, which had their world premiere on WGN Radio. The Chicago Tribune's Rick Kogan enthusiastically called her "one of the most talented singers," and "the real deal." Laury commemorated the release with a special concert performance at the Jazz Showcase. Laury's solo recordings are available on iTunes and Amazon.com.

 

Touring with Legrand as his vocal soloist for over five years, Laury made her debut at the prestigious Carnegie Hall, The Sahara Hotel in Vegas, Red Rocks Amphitheater in Denver, Miami's Stars Under The Stars Concert Series at Marine Stadium, The Westbury Theatre in New York, The Forum in Montreal Canada, as well as concert halls in San Francisco, Dallas, Pittsburgh, New Orleans and Los Angeles. It also gave Laury the honor of sharing stages with many musical icons including Tony Bennett, Buddy Rich, Cleo Laine and John Dankworth, while also performing and recording with jazz greats Phil Woods, Ron Carter, Grady Tate, Randy Brecker and Joe Beck. Laury's years with Michel are immortalized on two RCA recordings, featuring her duet with Legrand on his Oscar-nominated song Pieces Of Dreams:  Michel Legrand & Friends and Michel Legrand The RCA Years that also includes musical luminaries Lena Horne and Jack Jones.

 

Laury historically reunited with Michel Legrand, along with bassist John Patitucci and drummer Willie Jones III, at The Dakota Jazz Club in Minneapolis on his 2011/12 U.S. tour. In 2017, in honor of Legrand's 85th birthday, Laury performed a tribute concert at the Madden Theatre PAC, entitled The Music Never Ends ...Laury Shelley sings Michel Legrand to audience acclaim. It resulted in another live TV performance on CW/WGN Midday Show, of the Grammy Award-winning tune The Hands of Time (Brian's Song).

 

Because of her vast musical vocal flexibility, Laury quickly became one of the most in-demand commercial vocalists for clients such as McDonald's, Kellogg's, United Airlines, 7-Up, Coors Light Beer, American Greeting Cards and many others.

 

Displaying enormous range and versatility, Laury puts her own indelible stamp on every song she sings, whether its pop, jazz, rock and soul. She has a voice that acts as its' own instrument and has been called "a musician's musician," and legendary Grammy Award-winning alto saxophonist Phil Woods stating "like a fine wine, Laury Shelley is better than ever."   She makes each performance unforgettable and is someone you need to hear and experience. Visit www.LauryShelley.com.

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