Local star Linda Cole opened JazzMania '97 on both Saturday and Sunday, and WOW, did she ever get the jazz music rolling!

Linda Cole isn’t a song stylist but an interpreter who brings a conversational intimacy to the most familiar standards. And she relates to her trio musician to musician, not singer to singer.

Evelyn McGee Stone, a jazz singer a generation older, said Cole reminds her of the late Carmen McRae and is the best singer she has heard since moving to Florida.

"She has the feel of what I grew up with, singing with the great artists in the late ‘30s and early ‘40s," McGee Stone said. "I just think she’s delightful. I know that she’s going to go far."

On stage, Cole is always keenly aware of what’s going on around her, rhythmically and harmonically. A self-confessed "frustrated bass player," she sometimes mimes a bass line with one hand while holding her microphone in the other. She likes to sidle up behind her bassist when he solos, soaking up the warm tones as they emanate from the back of the instrument.

The beach is so fortunate to have such a wonderful and talented performer!