Sunday 24 February 2008

What the Caked Crusader chose to bake to this week (23 Feb 2008)

I wouldn’t say that Stacey Kent is going to go down in musical history as one of the all-time great female jazz singers, but I have a soft spot for her uncomplicated style and the way that you always get the sense that she thinks the song’s the star, rather than her – she never spoils a classic with the modern curse of vocal acrobatics which seems to involve putting in 8 notes where only one is required.

Her plaintive rendition of “Fools Rush In” – possibly Johnny Mercer’s finest lyric and, trust me, there’s a lot of competition! – is her masterpiece; not a word or note is wasted and I still can’t listen to it without hitting the replay button!

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