Don't Talk - Clare Teal

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Definitely a cut above the rest
Lyrics	Sublime
Quality and consistency of tracks	A couple of weak links
Value for Money

Advantages:	Jazz for the uninitiated
Disadvantages:	None

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

OK, cards on the table. I’m not a jazz fan. In fact, I didn’t even buy this CD – I won it in a Classic FM competition. I think it was Simon Bates’ record of the week. I also have no prior knowledge of this artiste. This will either make for an interesting review, or a display of someone randomly fumbling in the dark.

I am, however, an Elvis Costello fan. Due to the man’s inability to stick to one genre of music, I’ve gotten used to listening to a wide variety of styles. This, I would say, is a good thing.

So, this will be a layman’s attempt to critique the latest offering from Ms. Teal. Pull up a chair and your drink of choice and we’ll get started.

The first thing I have to say is that I don’t like Ms. Teal’s picture on the front cover of the CD. Hmm, first impressions and all that. Perhaps she’s just been startled by Jamie Cullum. The other pictures of her in the CD booklet are good – in fact she’s extremely attractive.

I’ll now go through each of the tracks and give you my opinion. Again, bear with me – I don’t know much about jazz, but I know what I like.

Messin’ With Fire – this might be due to my cultural conditioning but this brings to mind Disney’s Jungle Book (the source of most of my jazz knowledge), or maybe Aladdin. This is one of four tracks written by Ms. Teal and is done in a big band style. A good start to the album, but I can’t help but think of a large blue genie singing “you ain’t never had a friend like me”.

When In Rome (I do as the Romans do) – fairly easy listening, you could imagine Dean Martin crooning this between drinks. (Was the Martini named after Dean Martin?)

Stoned Soul Picnic – this has a more modern sound. Well, if you consider Carole King modern. A little bit of a country edge.

Everything Is You – this is quite a happy sounding tune and is the second track to be co-written by Ms. Teal. The kind of thing you might hear on “Strictly Come Dancing”. Nice saxophone break. Presumably you could do a samba to this – the background singers certainly imply as much.

What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life – this is a really nice, slow ballad. A welcome rest from all that jumping around in the previous tracks.

You Bring The Best Out In Me – this is more mainstream than I would associate with “jazz”. There’s certainly a bit of country in there. Again, Ms. Teal has co-writing credits.

The Music Goes Round And Round – Even I know this one. This is the kind of thing I would associate with jazz music. It even mentions jazz in the lyrics.

Don’t Talk (Put Your Head On My Shoulder) – at last, a song I know something about. This is a version of a song originally recorded by the Beach Boys. Ms. Teal doesn’t do a bad job of it but, as is often the case for me, the original can’t be improved upon.

Mood Indigo – surely this song is the personification of smooth jazz. You can almost smell the stale cigarette smoke. In a good way, of course. An old Duke Ellington number.

Falling For You – I really like this song. It was written by Ms. Teal, but to me it actually sounds like an Elvis Costello song. Not a rip-off or a pastiche, it sounds like he wrote it. This is probably my favourite track.

In A Mellow Tone – after three slow songs, we’re back to something more upbeat and more traditionally jazz. Not surprising, since it was written by Duke Ellington.

So In Love – this is a Cole Porter song. I think it’s from “Kiss Me Kate”. Pleasant enough, but at almost 6 minutes, probably too long.

I Just Want To Make Love To You – this is a fantastic song, and a great end to the album. Written by Willie Dixon, the Etta James version of this song was used in two TV adverts – one for Diet Coke and another for John Smith’s Bitter. You will recognise it, even if you only associate it with someone trying to sell you something.

So there we have it. Surprisingly, I enjoyed this album – Ms. Teal has a great voice. I do think, however, that this type of music is best appreciated live.