Not even thirty yet, Melody Gardot’s journey has been vast and wide. In 2012 she gave The Telegraph an interview discussing, amongst other things, the near fatal accident she experienced when she was nineteen years old. As you might imagine, this changed and re-shaped her life from that point on. I encourage you to read the interview or check out other sources about Ms. Gardot.
I first heard of Melody Gardot when I caught her version of Over the Rainbow. I consider the Harold Arlen and Yip Harburg penned Over the Rainbow perhaps the greatest song ever written. Featured on her 2009 album, “My One and Only Thrill,” Melody’s version has a mid-tempo shuffle to it, as opposed to a slower, ballad feel. It works. Another preferred track from that disc, for me, is If the Stars were Mine. Lovely. A few years later I heard Iemanja from her then latest release, “The Absence” on satellite radio. I was hooked again and sought out the LP.
Released in the United States the exact day that The Telegraph’s interview was published, “The Absence” is a quietly intense record, filled with passion, stillness, melancholy and joy set against a Brazilian, Bossa-Nova, Jazz landscape. Just to speak about one of the twelve songs found on this great album, Mira is a four minute delight. Towards the end of the song, there is a flurry of activity so carefully displayed that the ear relishes the controlled chaos. Okay, I’m going to write about another song, too. Amalia is also immensely satisfying. This warm blue, lazy afternoon tune offers a slice of joy that I mentioned earlier. It is grin producing. What makes this album and all of Melody’s work such a gift is her singing. I can hear a little bit of Edith Piaff, Ella Fitzgerald and perhaps Judy Garland in her styling. But make no bones about it, Melody Gardot has an unique voice all her own. Her phrasing is sublime. Her delivery is understated but not underrated; it is rich and full. She is a master of her instrument and I look forward to where her journey continues to take her. I feel fortunate that she invites us to go along.
365, Album of the Day 2014 