Like a perfume with delightfully sweet top notes, the tonal purity of Diana Panton's voice instantly enchants. As with the best signature scent, the middle and bottom notes reveal subtle complexity - at times uplifting and carefree or hauntingly melancholic, bringing out different nuances based on the message of each song. This heady mix of delicate fragility paired with honest expression recalls the ephemeral natural beauty of a rose with its soft lingering scent. Intertwined with these intoxicating vocals are accompaniment and solos of the finest quality. The minimalist instrumentation by Don Thompson (O. C.) and Reg Schwager (C. M.) highlights every word and raw emotion. soft winds and roses highlights modern classics from the 1960s onward. This music seeps under your skin, blooms in your heart and remains there, affirming that this sonic elixir is something rare and special.


[...] the sound of Diana Panton's voice is astounding. I am convinced that no one on this planet sounds like her. She is definitely an original. What shines from her is sweetness and innocence and enormous clarity. The world should be knocked over by Diana's quality.
What I love about Diana's voice is how moved she is about music and that she clearly passes into a zone when singing. I know because I wind up there myself when I'm writing. I don't hear anything or see anything, and hours can pass as if the time elapse had just been minutes. When Diana sings, she's swept up by her focus and artistic expression, and nothing else matters. [...] On soft winds and roses, Diana, a two-time Juno winner in Canada, returns to a romantic style that captivates and intoxicates.
[...] almost one hour of perfectly crafted music. Featuring beautifully [created] arrangements of beguiling variety and sensuousness, in every lovingly caressed phrase, as only Miss Panton can deliver. The album unfolds – each song unwinding and curling around your heart interminably. If you get the feeling that you are suddenly in the presence of Canada’s first lady of song you are probably not wrong.
soft winds and roses is a beautiful album. It really comes down to Panton’s voice. She has produced the album in such a way that her voice is clearly spotlighted. It is clear, and it is full of emotion and feeling. She draws the listener in, and magically keeps them well within her grasp. A gentle kind grasp that is, but she holds on to the listener. soft winds and roses is a wonderful album.
Diana Panton is the most beautiful Canadian voice you may not know about [...] impeccable phrasing that conveys simple, authentic emotions, without effusion. An interiority revealed with honesty and modesty. [...] Once again, an irresistible flawless performance. Thank you Diana Panton.
Hearing Panton’s understated and wonderfully nuanced vocals accompanied only by guitarist Reg Schwager and the multi-instrumentalist/arranger Don Thompson allow you to experience these mostly familiar songs in a unfamiliar, but quietly charming setting. 
Diana Panton’s latest opus, soft winds and roses, is a halcyon classic. It exudes tranquility while simultaneously stimulating thoughts of love and passion.  [...] It requires nerve for a singer to cover well-known masterpieces [...]. Making these songs seem fresh again is challenging, but Panton magically infuses them with a breezy energy. There is something “nice ‘n’ easy” about them, as Frank Sinatra would say. 
There is a timeless, almost magical quality to [Diana Panton's] rendition [of “Pussywillows, Cat-Tails,”] as she delivers a captivating, touching performance.
I wasn’t familiar with Gordon Lightfoot’s “Pussywillows Cat-Tails” prior, but wow! It’s beautiful, too—as is the album as a whole. And did I mention “Here, There and Everywhere” and “Both Sides Now”? The first is beautiful, the latter profound. 
[Diana Panton] has released a delightful album of modern classics composed from the 1960s onward. [...] A bit of a trip down memory lane, but a smooth, lovely, and very happy one.
There is a purity to Diana’s voice on soft winds and roses that lands so perfectly in my ear.  Couple it with her thoughtful song choices and continued collaboration with the legendary Don Thompson and Reg Schwager and I am easily drawn in.  It’s a delicate potion that one holds to heal. Private in tone but never powerless. 
[This is] an album of positivity that is sent from Diana Panton to us, and in these troubled times we need a lot more love to stop us breaking down. I’ll return to this album when the worries of the day get on top of me; it belongs to a simpler and happier time.
Beautifully recorded!
Overall, Soft Winds and Roses is an album that consistently delights, from start to finish. Diana’s voice is the star here, but it’s supported by stellar arrangements from Don Thompson, and expert mixing and mastering by Chad Irschick. The musicians backing her up are top-tier, and the arrangements frame her voice beautifully. The result is an album that feels like a work of art—a carefully crafted piece, worthy of its place in a museum.
Panton's stellar performance adds a unique, deeply personal touch to each composition, transforming Soft Winds and Roses into a work that transcends its time.
With soft winds and roses, Panton proves once again the validity of her abiding belief in the timelessness of great music. Her interpretations breathe new life into these classics, inviting listeners to experience – in new ways – all of the emotional nuances of each track. And as she continues to enchant her global audience by so effortlessly merging the past with the present, her voice — like that music she so loves – remains exquisitely, captivatingly ageless.
La chanteuse n’a pas besoin de livrer un jazz flamboyant pour nous toucher, et maîtrise parfaitement ce registre. À travers cet album d’un peu moins d’une heure, on peine à trouver de véritables faiblesses et si vous connaissez et aimez déjà la musique de Diana Panton, on ne voit aucune raison de ne pas aussi adorer cette sortie, qui s’écoute franchement bien surtout en fin de soirée.
These 14 songs sung by Diana Panton are love at first listen. The enchanting warmth, tenderness, and authenticity of her voice is irresistible, and we find ourselves transported body and soul to an intimate nightclub of the imagination. [...] The result, from one of our favorite Canadian singers, is highly recommended.
Panton performs [...] flawlessly with her feather-light, beautiful tone and appealing sincerity. [...] Her presentation on each composition is intimate and full of emotion. 
Panton has produced an incredible album, and soft winds and roses is not only an album her fans will enjoy but will gain her a whole new following. 
soft winds and roses follows Diana Panton on a sonic journey to the world of the subtle waters of Monet, and the astonishing seascapes of Renoir, as she reinvents this glorious canvas of sound.
Cozy portraits are painted by the plaintive Diana Panton, backed by the Spartan team of Reg Schwager/g and Don Thompson/b-p-vib.  [...] Patient etchings.