Madeleine Peyroux is back with her third release, Half the Perfect World, another series of songs that provide different glimpses onto the many-faceted jewel that is love. Arguably the best vocalist working today, her captivating siren call wavers on the border between joy and heartbreak, simultaneously presenting the pleasure and pain love brings through her evocative voice.
Among those she sings about are those who have loved and lost, those whose love is unrequited, and those who have mistaken a relationship for love. Johnny Mercer’s “Summer Wind” comes blowin’ in as the music swings slowly like a backyard hammock on a warm, summer night. Gary Foster’s alto sax solo adds the right amount of flourish. The song fades away just like the summer fling it describes.
Leonard Cohen and Anjani Thomas’ “Blue Alert” sounds the alarm as the soft bells of the celesta softly ring. Peyroux tries to warn you, but you don’t listen as you try to get the girl you can’t. Your desire “tells you No and No again,” but you forge ahead foolishly even though “Any way you turn is going to hurt.” The organ wonderfully punctuates during the bridge.
“I’m All Right” opens the album, shuffling along with an easygoing rhythm led by the lilting sounds of a Wurlitzer and the strum of a guitar and ukulele. Co-written by Peyroux, Jesse Harris (the songwriter/guitarist best known for his work on Norah Jones’ debut), and Walter Becker (guitarist of Steely Dan), the song tells the story about being all alone in a relationship, yet she stays in it, telling herself “… I’m all right/ I’ve been lonely before.” Her lover is distracted by himself and unaware: smoking cigars in bed, when she asked “for a few kind words,/ He gave me a novel instead-,” and getting drunk and trashing their place. She wrongly convinces herself to stay because “tears don’t leave any scars.” Towards the end, you can hear her make up lyrics on the fly. She breaks character, chuckling at her word choices.
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