Singer Gwyneth Herbert first came to public attention as a gifted interpreter of jazz standards. She soon found the restrictions of the “Great American Songbook” too limiting and rather than take the easy option of continuing down this road opted instead to write and record her own material. A defiantly independent 21st Century woman she subsequently emerged as a distinctive and highly original singer/songwriter with the album “Between Me And The Wardrobe” , produced by Polar Bear and Acoustic Ladyland drummer Sebastian Rochford.

Herbert’s latest offering “All The Ghosts” was released in July 2009 and has been sitting on my “to do” pile for quite some time. The sheer quality of the songs and performances on the album only makes me regret not having come to it sooner. There are nine of Herbert’s superb original songs plus a delightful secret surprise which we’ll come to later.

Herbert’s ability as a vocalist has never been in doubt, she can sing pretty much anything across a broad range of styles, but it is the quality of her songs that is the most pleasing aspect here. There is something very English about her writing that has drawn comparisons with Ray Davies but there are also echoes of David Bowie and perhaps Tom Waits in her vividly bohemian lyrics.

However Herbert writes very much from a woman’s viewpoint and comparisons should also be made with the great female artists such as Joni Mitchell, Kate Bush, Bjork and PJ Harvey, all fearlessly individual writers and performers. Herbert frequently sings from personal experience (“My Mini And Me”) but she also invents convincing characters for her songs, many of them here being “outsider” women (Annie’s Yellow Bag”, “Lorelei”, “Nataliya”). Her lyrics are poetic, colourful , thought provoking and often highly personal.

This is emphatically not a jazz album although elements remain in both the personnel and performances. Many of the songs have a strong pop sensibility that suggests that mainstream acceptance is not wholly out of the equation. However in Herbert’s case any commercial success would be achieved without any hint of compromise.

We should mention Herbert’s collaborators here as they are vital components in the creation of her personal soundworld. Her band is comprised of some of the U.K.‘s finest young jazz musicians with versatile guitarist Al Cherry and keyboard player Steve Holness (who first worked with Herbert in NYJO) plus an all star rhythm team of bassist Sam Burgess (of Curios) and drummer/percussionist Dave Price (of Clown Revisted). These last two are also highly effective colourists and texturalists with Burgess’ rich, grainy arco bass sometimes performing the function of a cello. Producer/engineer Robert Harder is also a vitally important contributor adding judicious elements of electronica to Herbert’s already quirky songs plus a crystal clear mix that brings out all the beauty and nuance of the singing and playing. 

As for the songs themselves, opener “So Worn Out” has a real pop sensibility with an infectious chorus and lyrics that chronicle after hours London night life, perhaps inviting that Ray Davies comparison. Tightly played and sung it also adds an other worldly element courtesy of Jonathan Bearman’s “droid” electronics that in part recall Leafcutter John’s work with Polar Bear. A great, attention grabbing start, maybe a potential single.

“Annie’s Yellow Bag” is similarly arresting. Effectively it’s the title track, containing as it does the “All The Ghosts” lyric. An evocative tale of a teenage runaway it’s full of more bohemian London imagery and packs a couple of mighty hooks which metamorphose into huge hand clapping choruses. This is another fine example of pop sensibility with a dark,thought provoking edge.

“Lorelei” is another “character” song, this time telling the tale of a predatory femme fatale. Musically it’s closer to chanson or Tom Waits than what has gone before with Price turning in a particularly impressive performance. As a drummer he is possessed with a musical imagination to rival that of Rochford.

“My Narrow Man” is in part a highly personal love song sung feelingly by Herbert and full of erotic imagery. Simultaneously it’s full of clever references to popular culture, something Herbert does very well. Burgess is particularly impressive here both with and without the bow.

The fast shuffle of “Jane Into A Beauty Queen” is too self consciously quirky but the vicious “Put Your Mouth Where Your Money Is” combines eclecticism and venom in a kind of chanson of revenge.

“Nataliya” tells the tale of a Russian prostitute working abroad. It’s evocative and sharply observed with important contributions from Burgess on arco bass and Price on tuned percussion.

In “My Mini And Me” Herbert sings of escaping the city in her beloved Mini. The brutal blues arrangement is led by Cherry’s guitar and heads off into PJ Harvey territory. Holness adds suitably gothic organ on something of a tour de force.

On “Some Days I Forget” Herbert sounds empty and desolate on a song that most closely recalls her jazz standards past.

The hidden surprise is a superbly powerful acoustic guitar and vocal version of David Bowie’s “Rock ‘n’ Roll Suicide” tucked away several minutes after the album’s official close. Bowie seems to be a particular favourite of Herbert’s, she also references him in the lyrics to “Narrow Man.” Other covers in the Herbert repertoire include Portishead’s “Glory Box” and rather less predictably Dolly Parton’s “Jolene.”

It’s hard to put into words just how good this album is. The songs are generally of a very high standard and Herbert’s singing technically perfect and full of emotion, assertive and vulnerable by turns. The playing from a crack band is right on the money and the pinpoint production also spot on.

Perhaps just a little too eclectic for mass success there’s no reason why one of these songs shouldn’t become a left field hit with the right airplay. In any event Herbert deserves an audience that reaches way beyond the jazz ghetto. This is the kind of work that deserves a Mercury nomination and all that goes with it. It could well be that this album meets the criteria for 2010 entry due to it’s relatively late release date. Let’s hope so. This is music that deserves to be widely heard.

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