Kurt Elling is unmistakably a jazz singer; his subtle shifts of accent and time transform the most mundane lyrics into narratives steeped in the human condition....Elling's transformative powers are centred on a pitch-perfect tenor, clear diction and pinpoint timing....But most important, Elling is completely at one with his band.  ~ Mike Hobart, The Financial Times

Listening to Elling is a masterclass on how to make voice, words, melody and microphone work together to fix an atmosphere. The voice itself is astonishing....Elling made it soar up at the end of I like the Sunrise, holding a high trumpet-like note for what seemed an eternity.  ~ Ivan Hewett, The Telegraph

Starting with one of his signature songs, "My Foolish Heart", Elling showed us the boundless possibilities that exist when the full palette of the bona fide jazz singer is in play. Interpolating the Victor Young/Ned Washington standard with a sung poem ("The Moon Was Once a Moth") by 8th century Sufi saint, Rabi'a of Basra, the central part of this triptych ended with a hypnotically repeating phrase ("and again") that rose ever higher until it evaporated right at the top of Elling's four-octave range, before we returned to the standard's welcoming embrace....Last night we got to hear jazz singing at its virtuosic, life-affirming, risk-taking best.  ~ Peter Quinn, The Arts Desk

A singer of astonishing technique and meticulous craft, [Elling] has the poetic imagination to turn coy tunes into sinister ones, or torch-song heartaches into raw-nerve nightmares, as well as the jazz skills to improvise with the exultant freedom of a post-Coltrane sax player....A jazz singer to the core, Elling is a charismatic ambassador for the music wherever he goes.  ~ John Fordham, The Guardian