Heartfelt, touching and intimate – there's so much to enjoy in this captivating debut album from vocalist Wilma Baan. Born in the Netherlands, Ms Baan performed at jazz clubs and festivals, including the North Sea Jazz Festival, and sang live on radio for a broadcast about the life and work of Irving Berlin, accompanied by the KRO Orchestra. Now based in the UK, a long-standing ambition to document her love of standards has finally come to fruition, and lovers of vocal jazz are most definitely the beneficiaries.

Beautifully arranged by pianist Graham Harvey, Baan's immaculate pitching and seasoned relationship with the pulse are demonstrated from the outset in the heart-warming title track. Tempos are perfectly judged throughout, from the bracingly fresh ‘Social Call’ and the sparkling list song ‘Better Than Anything’, to the wonderfully noirish ‘Close Enough for Love’, a favourite of vocalists, and previously recorded by the likes of Joe Williams, Tony Bennett, Shirley Horn as well as one of Baan's touchstones, Dianne Reeves. Other highlights include a bossafied ‘Day By Day’, which recalls the great version recorded by Eliane Elias, plus a loving nod to Shirley Horn's peerless take on ‘Here's to Life’.

Recorded, mixed and mastered by Chris Traves, and co-produced by Traves and Claire Martin for Soup to Nuts Productions, the album sounds fantastic. File under ‘unexpected delight’.