So, when I was offered the chance to preview her new CD Sentimental Journey, I jumped at it. I received the CD on Friday, popped it into the CD player and listened to it over and over. And over. With so many of today's music stars hiding marginal talent behind auto-tune and creative editing, it's refreshing to listen to a CD that shows real talent. There are none of those gimmicks here, just real music and real vocals - and real feeling.
The CD is:
A collection of covers of classic songs that span the '20s to the '60s. The album's highlights include its title track, which was a No. 1 hit for Les Brown and His Band of Renown with Doris Day as the vocalist in 1945; "These Foolish Things," a '30s standard that has been recorded by everyone from Nat King Cole and Bing Crosby to Rod Stewart and Michael Buble; "Summer Wind," which was popularized by Frank Sinatra in 1966; and "I"ll Be With You In Apple Blossom Time," which was a Top 5 hit for the Andrews Sisters in 1941.So it's quite a collection of songs, most of them from before my time, and all of them from before Ms. Rossum's time - but she makes them all her own. Emmy Rossum is meant to sing these songs! She chose the songs on this CD as an emotional and musical journey, with each song representing a month of the year. Each song either lyrically or emotionally reflects the corresponding month - Summer Wind for June, and Pretty Paper for December, were obvious fits lyrically. Others were chosen for the emotional feeling of the song. For example, she chose Nobody Knows You (When You're Down and Out) for September because, "the plaintive melody and lyric emotionally reflect the cold weather creeping in and the sense of melancholy we can get in the fall months."
I must admit, I did not realize the CD was meant as a journey through the year when I first listened to it, but I will be paying attention to that the next time I listen. It really adds another layer to the overall experience. As it is, I have several 'favorite' songs on this CD already. I really love Summer Wind and Many Tears Ago and also Things. Here's the complete track list. Perhaps you'll find some favorites of your own.
- “Sentimental Journey” (Les Brown, Ben Homer, Arthur Green)
- “The Object Of My Affection” (Pinky Tomlin)
- “I’m Looking Over A Four Leaf Clover “(Mort Dixon, Harry M. Woods)
- “These Foolish Things (Remind Me Of You)” (Eric Maschwitz, Jack Strachey)
- “(I’ll Be With You) In Apple Blossom Time” (Albert Von Tilzer, Neville Fleeson)
- “Summer Wind” (Heinz Meier, Johnny Mercer)
- “Many Tears Ago” (Winfield Scott)
- “All I Do Is Dream Of You” (Nacio Herb Brown, Arthur Freed)
- “Nobody Knows You When You’re Down And Out” (Jimmy Cox)
- “Autumn Leaves” (Joseph Kosma, Jacques Prévert)
- “Things” (Bobby Darin)
- “Pretty Paper” (Willie Nelson)
Sentimental Journey
will be available January 29. Preorder on Amazon or iTunes now. Also, be sure to mark your calendars - Emmy will be appearing on Access Hollywood Live on January 25th where she will be performing a song from this CD. She'll also be appearing as a guest on Conan on January 28th, Chelsea Lately on January 29th, and The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson on February 6th.Be sure to visit the official Emmy Rossum web site and follow Emmy on Twitter to keep up with all the latest.
Note: I received a free copy of the CD from One2One Network to facilitate my review. By posting, I am eligible for incentives. All opinions stated are my own.
