Dave Gelly, The Observer
In lyricist Fran Landesman and composer Simon Wallace, Britain has one of the finest songwriting partnerships alive, and Sarah Moule brings their songs to life with wit and understanding. Landesman is the poet laureate of the borderland between urban hipness and emotional insecurity, a territory in which she finds an apparently endless supply of themes. Wallace’s melodies not only match the form and mood of the words to perfection – they are actual tunes, which makes a change. These songs can only come fully alive in a jazz setting, provided here by, among others, Jimm Mullen, Steve Waterman, Iain Ballamy and Tim Whitehead.
John Fordham, The Guardian
Friday November 15, 2002
The British singer Sarah Moule deftly delivered this title track at a recent London gig featuring a rare appearance by its original composer, the London-based American poet and lyricist Fran Landesman.
This debut set for the subtle and intelligent young vocalist features 14 new songs of Landesman’s, and Moule’s purring voice – honeyed in sound, subtle in timing and pitch, shrewd in weighting the music with meaning – maximises the lyricist’s repertoire of resigned humour, glimpsed tragedies and razor-sharp metaphor.
Some fine musicians including saxophonists Iain Ballamy and Tim Whitehead, and jazz/blues guitarist Jim Mullen, enhance an impressive beginning for Moule. British composer/pianist Simon Wallace is economically apposite on piano.
Garry Booth, BBC Music Magazine
22 August 2002
This is very superior cabaret fare: well-crafted original numbers that are sung flawlessly, and with slick accompaniments. Surprising then, that this is an entirely British production. Admittedly, the lyricist responsible, Fran Landesman, is a quintessential New Yorker – but she has lived in London for nearly 40 years. Beat poet turned club proprieter and musical writer, Landesman is best known for Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most, written with Tommy Wolf and now part of the jazz standard repertoire. Though now in her seventies, age has not dulled the sharpness of Landesman’s pen. The pieces here, co-written with pianist Simon Wallace, provide a masterclass in brush-offs, put-downs and wisecracks.
Sarah Moule’s bell-like, well-enunciated and somewhat operatic vocal style is rather at odds with the cynicism in material such as A Suicide in Schenectady, but the pairing works and the quality of Moule’s voice is what connects the song with the listener. The backing band is a real bonus too, with welcome guest spots from, among others, tenorists Iain Ballamy and Tim Whitehead.
Sue McCreeth, The Musician
22 August 2002
Sarah Moule sings 14 songs by Fran Landesman (Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most ) and Simon Wallace (co-composer various BBC comedy shows including Absolutely Fabulous) with warmth and assurance. What I like most about her style is the way she can sing with incandescent clarity in one phrase and sinful smokiness the next, this being especially effective in the superlative What Fools These Mortals Be. The lyrics are full of realism and the most scrutinous observation of us mortals now, this epitomised by When Your Computer Crashes. There is an absence of moon in June gloss but the musical style is very much in the mainstream tradition.
The recording quality is pure gold and there are delicious solos from Jim Mullen, Steve Waterman, Iain Ballamy, Tim Whitehead and Fayyaz Virji. Tune in My Head is a vocal duet with Ian Shaw featuring impeccably delivered twisting unison lines.
Kenny Mathieson, Jazzwise
22 May 2002
Sarah Moule tackles a batch of new songs by lyricist Fran Landesman, in musical settings by Landesman’s current songwriting partner, Simon Wallace (who also happens to be Moule’s husband). As you would expect from the writere of Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most, Landesman’s legendary wit and verbal dexterity is well in evidence on this latest batch of material, just as it was on Nikki Leighton-Thomas’ similarly conceived Forbidden Games.
Sarah Moule and her collaborators are sure-footed interpreters, even when the subject matter is very dark, as in A Suicide in Schenectady (spookily written for – but never sung by – the late Susannah McCorkle). The singer has a sweet, beguiling voice and a cool delivery, and captures the tone and fell of these bittersweet, cynical, but often funny songs to perfection. The supporting cast of instrumentalists is built around an excellent quintet, with Wallace on piano and Jim Mullen on guitar, augmented by guest spots by Iain Ballamy, Tim Whitehead and others, and guest vocals by Ian Shaw. If you like the jazz-cabaret approach, this is a classy and very enjoyable production.