Bare Bones [PA]

Performer: Madeleine Peyroux
Producer: Larry Klein
Distributor: Universal Distribution

Notes: Following two acclaimed albums largely composed of covers and standards, mercurial jazz-pop singer Madeleine Peyroux has created her first album consisting entirely of original songs. Working with her longtime producer and bandleader Larry Klein, along with other co-writers including Steely Dan's Walter Becker, Joe Henry, and second-generation jazz guitarist Julian Coryell, Peyroux has done a remarkable job of maintaining the sound and mood of her earlier work. Highlights include the opening acoustic shuffle "Instead," a perky bit of affirmation that showcases Peyroux's startlingly Billie Holiday-like phrasing, while the atypically rough-edged "You Can't Do Me" takes a page from Cat Power's recent fusions of Memphis soul and indie rock desperation. Madeleine Peyroux's fourth album isn't the normal mix of standards (contemporary or traditional) with a few songs of her own composing; each of the 11 tracks is a new song written by Peyroux, usually in tandem with producer Larry Klein or a guest. Still, she appears in her usual relaxed setting, with a small group perfectly poised to translate her languorous vocals into perfect accompaniment -- organist Larry Goldings, pianist Jim Beard, drummer Vinnie Colaiuta, plus producer Klein on bass, Dean Parks on guitar, and Carla Kihlstedt on violin. Fans of vocal jazz may be disappointed to see that all the songs are new ones -- many a great conversation could consist solely of the standards she should perform -- but they may regret the disappointment. Peyroux is not only a great interpreter of songs, she also knows how to write in what might be called the old-fashioned way, the type of song with a universal, direct, emotional power that became a rarity during the late 20th century. Also, the help she gets from her co-writers -- Walter Becker of Steely Dan, Klein, and friend Julian Coryell -- is priceless. Becker delivers a pair of special gems, including the title track and a song called "You Can't Do Me" that delivers the priceless cutting wit he perfected with Steely Dan (a sample: "You know I get so blue and I go/Down like a deep sea diver, out like a Coltrane tenor man.../Blewed like a Mississippi sharecropper, screwed like a high-school cheerleader"). Granted, Peyroux faces an uphill climb by delivering new songs in the same musical context that most listeners hear standards; after all, comparisons to the half-century of American popular song aren't fair, but they certainly come easy. Still, Bare Bones is a remarkable work from one of the best artists in vocal jazz. ~ John Bush

Entertainment Weekly (p.61) - "[I]t's interesting to hear that Victrola voice meet a more contemporary sensibility....[With] smart and emotional material." -- Grade: B Down Beat (p.80) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "Peyroux still sings in dark colors, but she makes a conscious attempt to rise above mere melancholy with her lyrics and vocals." JazzTimes (p.96) - "[The] pleasure -- from the lonely chamber folk of 'Our Lady of Pigalle' to the sweetly barren jazz of 'Somethin' Grand' -- is all ours as Peyroux wheedles and piques the most from every lyrical phrase." Dirty Linen (p.62) - "Peyroux's voice continues to be the main attraction...it's mood now varies more widely, expanding the breadth of its emotional shading..." Mojo (Publisher) (p.98) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "[S]he sings with deeper warmth and presence than ever before....With measured words balanced by easy, glowing grooves filled with Hammond, fiddle and her own sweet-spot acoustic rhythm." Paste (magazine) (p.64) - "Peyroux crosses over into full-fledged-songwriter terrain, penning or co-authoring all 11 tracks....The quality of her performance remains extraordinarily high..."

Madeleine Peyroux is helping to keep classic jazz vocals alive in the new millennium, and while her voice and delivery owe a supreme debt to the legendary Billie Holiday, Peyroux puts her own hip spin on Lady Day's musical tradition. As much an American version of Edith Piaf as a straight jazz singer, Peyroux interprets sorrowful songs by a host of artists across all genres, undauntedly tackling everything from "Careless Love" and "Lovesick Blues" to Leonard Cohen and Elliott Smith. She released her fourth full-length, HALF THE PERFECT WORLD, in 2006.

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