by Ian Mann
February 08, 2007
/ ALBUM
Quality interpretations of the Great American Songbook. Stylish and sophisticated.
Young British singer Matthew Ford leads a world-class band through a set of imaginative arrangements of songs mainly drawn from the “Great American Songbook”.
Ford has an excellent voice, confident and assured and he is a fine interpreter of a lyric. The arrangements by pianist James Pearson and alto saxophonist/flautist Colin Skinner are consistently excellent and judicious use is made of a string section led and arranged by violinist Steve Bentley-Klein. The strings are skilfully woven into the tapestry of the songs and add to the atmosphere rather than becoming cloying as so often happens.
The material is peppered by brief and pithy solos from top class jazz musicians of the calibre of guitarist Jim Mullen. Here he is particularly outstanding on “Autumn Leaves” and “Do Nothing ‘Till You Hear From Me”. Altoist Skinner, tenor man Robert Fowler and trumpeter Mike Lovatt also make sterling contributions, the latter also excelling on “Do Nothing?” with his bluesy growl. Bassist Jeremy Brown and Mullen’s regular drummer Matt Skelton make a fine rhythm section, both tasteful and swinging.
Most of the songs are familiar standards drawn from “The Great American Songbook” with many of that country’s great songwriters featured. The record is broadly divided into two halves with a series of eight up-tempo swingers kicking off the album followed by eight smouldering ballads with a greater emphasis on the strings. Ford’ velvet voice is up to both tasks. He is smooth and sophisticated on the swingers, relaxed and intimate on the ballads. His phrasing and interpretation are spot on throughout and there is never a hint of strain in his voice.
One unusual choice of material is the version of Astor Piazolla’s “Oblivion” which is included in the “ballad” section. This features an English lyric written by album producer Pete North. The resourceful North also plays accordion on this track and this in conjunction with Ford’s voice and Bentley-Klein’s string arrangement makes for a fine interpretation of the song. Elsewhere North contributes bass trombone and with the assistance of engineer Curtis Schwarz he also does a fine job in the production booth.
We were also sent a CD featuring Ford covering twelve Christmas songs in conjunction with several of the musicians mentioned above. However even with snow falling outside as I write I still can’t bring myself to review this in February! Maybe later in the year.
I must admit that Ford’s style is not to my personal tastes. I find him altogether too smooth and “showbizzy”. However there is no doubting the fact that he has a superb voice and that on this album he has surrounded himself with top quality musicians and arrangers. He may not appeal to my ears but he is clearly a class act and very good at what he does. With exposure on Radio 2, and especially if he can get on TV as well, there is the possibility that stardom may beckon. There is a large market for this type of music and the stylish Ford is of a higher quality than much of the opposition.
Not for me, but I wish him well.
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