The story of jazz singer / songwriter Melody Gardot is special. At the age of nineteen, in 2004, she was hit by a serious traffic accident that she barely survived. She largely lost her sight and has since walked with a walking stick. During her rehabilitation she found comfort in music (therapy). She learned to play the guitar and started writing songs. They were picked up by Verve, who released
… her debut CD Worrisome Heart in 2008. It turned out to be a beautiful and personal album with influences from folk, pop and jazz. Gardot was immediately included in the premier league of contemporary singers such as Norah Jones, Madeleine Peyroux, Eva Cassidy and mentrix Joni Mitchell. It is therefore no surprise that Gardot's second CD was produced by Larry Klein, the producer behind successful albums by Mitchell and Peyroux, among others. Together with arranger Vince Mendoza, he provided Gardot's mostly self-written songs on My One And Only Thrill with a generous layer of strings. That produces a beautiful, and extremely relaxed (but also somewhat sleep-inducing) album full of sultry vocals. (HB)more
