Contrary to opinion, Rok2id and I can agree. I would not exactly call it sacrilege, but I do agree with the general sentiment. Krall is good and her records do sound (hi-fi) great; but Ella, that's a whole other world. But this thread is really not about Krall, nor the state of jazz since song standards don't define the state of jazz; and certainly not the state-of-the-art in jazz. I think that the original question needs a bit more focus.
The jazz community did not "produce" songs as defined by the OP. The Great American Songbook is made up primarily of songs from the great American Broadway Musicals. Many of these later became instrumental vehicles for jazz players. Jazz players did produce (and still produce) many jazz tunes which have become "standards"; some of which were given lyrics after the fact. IMO, vocalists have never defined the "state of jazz" nor what is state-of-the-art in jazz, the great instrumentalists have. Jazz, being an improvisatory art, has always had instrumentalists as the greatest exponents of the art. Obviously, there have always been great singers, but not all the great singers who sang standards were, nor are, jazz singers. I think that the state of jazz singing is a category unto itself.
The jazz community did not "produce" songs as defined by the OP. The Great American Songbook is made up primarily of songs from the great American Broadway Musicals. Many of these later became instrumental vehicles for jazz players. Jazz players did produce (and still produce) many jazz tunes which have become "standards"; some of which were given lyrics after the fact. IMO, vocalists have never defined the "state of jazz" nor what is state-of-the-art in jazz, the great instrumentalists have. Jazz, being an improvisatory art, has always had instrumentalists as the greatest exponents of the art. Obviously, there have always been great singers, but not all the great singers who sang standards were, nor are, jazz singers. I think that the state of jazz singing is a category unto itself.