Madeleine Peyroux

Post by **jarkko** » Sat Jul 23, 2005 11:12 am

Interview with Madeleine Peyroux (her Cohen cover of "Dance me.." is on the album "Careless Love"):

http://www.femalefirst.co.uk/entertainment/76592004.htm

"Careless Love" is worth the wait it has the focus and an understated energy that its predecessor lacked. The album was produced by Larry Klein, who had previously worked with Joni Mitchell, Shawn Colvin,. "Larry only works with singers and that is a rare breed" says Madeleine. ""Larry convinced me that I could interpret songs by Leonard Cohen and Bob Dylan in my own way. He has a very personal relationship with these songs, and so do I. The album took three months to record. Three quarters of that was spent sifting choices down to twelve of my favourite songs and favourite songwriters. The songs are very well written, with a lot of perfectionism, their timelessness is already there and it is a question of feeling that out. "

Once again she has chosen an eclectic mix of timeless songs and given them her unique folk blues twist. W.C. Handy's title track was popularised by Bessie Smith in the 1920s, while Hank Williams' "Weary Blues" sits easily alongside Elliott Smith's "Between the Bars", Leonard Cohen's "Dance Me to the End of Love " and Bob Dylan's "You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go".

linda_lakeside · Post by **linda_lakeside** » Sun Jul 24, 2005 9:26 am

Much appreciated. She does this song with such style! I'm glad she's making her first big 'splash' with one of Leonard's song.

Linda.

Tchocolatl · Post by **Tchocolatl** » Sun Jul 24, 2005 3:25 pm

She made her big splash with her first album Linda.

You could hear it everywhere and her name was on all lips.

And if it is for someone in the show business before her, I would say it is because of

more than LC anybody else.

The problem - if there is a problem - with her, is that she is not a star system style person, the pressure of tIhe show business made her have health problem just on a vocal cord.

So she made an rather long eclips on a "chobiz" point of view, but she came backs as strong as she had left.

Re her performance in the MIJF of this year, she was reported by a journalist to be not properly dressed for the stage when she gave her show. According to the management her, luggages were lost in the trip to the town, and this is the reason. What a stupid thing anyway, to talk about, the look of a singer, a singer is not a model, the duty is to sing, and for this, she is reported for not being equal either, it depends of her moods, if I had understood well. For me, it explains why I found so true feelings in her performances and I prefer this to a perfect robot that could stand to be a circus animal day after day. It seems to have a contradiction with "being real" and doing this.

linda_lakeside · Post by **linda_lakeside** » Sun Jul 24, 2005 5:13 pm

Hi Tchoco,

Oh, yes. I've been hearing her name for sometime now. You're right, we're hearing more about Dance Me to...right now because of LC. I knew she had surgery, which surprised me, as there were a couple of singers, who had surgery on their vocal chords and have been left unable to sing (Julie Andrews and oh, I can't remember her name, but she's a Canadian soprano).

Kush made a good point, he said that her (Madeleine's) vocals are so similar to that of our lovely Billie that she must have, at one time, tried to 'imitate' Lady Day, and just doesn't remember. Maybe, as a child, she was exposed to Billie's music in some way. I listened very carefully to Dance Me to....the other night, and the way Kush had described it in his post, came right through. The way she cuts some phrases and wraps around others...so much like Billie. Let's hope Ms. Peyroux has an easier time of it than darling Billie...

Linda.

Tchocolatl · Post by **Tchocolatl** » Sun Jul 24, 2005 6:48 pm

This was discussed in 2 or 3 other threads and all was said.

I repeat though. You may go for Kush's opinion if it is yours or for any other reason, but for me, I think that she had this voice and can not do anything about it. Like when one is a sosie of someone else without doing anything special but having DNA.

Now the fact that BH is huge helps MP, certainly.

But that's it.

To me they are very different also.

I was listening BH last Friday night and this was not like MP at all. Not at all. Never. Ever. In term of energy. And I am not alone who are feeling the difference in the energy, if you go read those previous threads.

MP really has a sensitivity - really deep, really great - of her own. She sings beautifully songs created and done by other huge talented artists, like, Between the bars, weary blues, you're gonna make me lonesome, and of course, dmtteof.

linda_lakeside · Post by **linda_lakeside** » Mon Jul 25, 2005 8:41 am

Hi Tchoco,

Of course there are going to be those that agree and those that don't. I listen to BH quite a bit, and as far as world weary, Billie doing My Man or Don't Explain is about as world-weary as a woman can get.

But that doesn't take away from MP's own talent. I think she's still a bit young to have the 'weariness' of BH, and of course, she not an exact replica, but I do think that somewhere, somehow, she was exposed to BH. There is another singer in Canada (whose name I forget) who has also been likened to BH - more for the vocal sound than for her energy or 'world weariness'.

I'm sure that Ms Peyroux will do well on her own, and the further along she gets in her career, the more likely the comparisons with BH will go away. She is an amazing talent, for sure. And she'll become more comfortable with her own style. She has a long way to go yet.

Linda.

Tchocolatl · Post by **Tchocolatl** » Tue Jul 26, 2005 2:19 am

Linda, yes some agree some not. I think I just did not explain properly what I wanted to stress.

For the musical influences, if you find the threads about her, you'll find the articles in which she explains about Mom's and Dad's favourite music she was exposed to as a child. This is also on her site. I did bring the link in one of the threads.

Now - I repeat - again : this belief about her having this voice because she heard about BL, I'm not sure. I just think that they have voices alike, just like sosies have the same features. If she were born before BH, people would say that BL has the voice of MP. Some may agree some may not. I say this because she indeed has her own style.

As for the style, I explain :

1), both sing the blues but their style are different because you can recognize between the two women easily right from the beginning, and it does not depend of the musics and arrangements that could gives clues, this because she does not try to imitate.

2) I wanted to stress that she did very personal stuff with songs of artists as huge as BL, as well as she can do personal singing with this voice that she had. To be able to do that you have to have strong artistic qualities of your own.

linda_lakeside · Post by **linda_lakeside** » Tue Jul 26, 2005 3:25 am

Of course she has her own vocal talent. No doubt. She isn't a parrot. This young woman can sing. It's almost like someone has to past some sort of 'test' to become an 'elite' singer. Diana Krall and the comparisons to Peggy Lee and as I'm typing very fast, the comparisons aren't coming very fast

, yet I agree that their voices are alike (in some ways) but by being so, it would be so difficult to even subconsciously not make an attempt to sound like your 'shadow'. Who knows, as a kid she may have used her hairbrush and sang to old BH songs. Somewhere. Our lives are full of experiences we don't remember.

But, under the microscope, no two are exactly the same. Even to our ears. We can hear the difference. It must be hard for her (even in her sleep) to try and live up to what is expected of her.

Linda.

Tchocolatl · Post by **Tchocolatl** » Tue Jul 26, 2005 4:25 am

Well, according to your theory she must be the clone of Louis Armstrong - this, I guess, would have been hard even in her sleep - as well as few other persons.

Why it is so difficult to understand that voices can be what they are without any intention from the person, as well features can do? Strange... but does not matter a lot.

linda_lakeside · Post by **linda_lakeside** » Tue Jul 26, 2005 10:54 am

Tchoco,

It is not difficult to understand that a person can have a great voice without influence by others. What I'm saying is, she has a great voice, she does (to my ears anyway), sound as if she had BH influence. Artists have influenced one another since the beginning of music. It often becomes less obvious when an artist becomes older and more confident in their own style. I don't have definitive answers. Maybe I'm wrong, I don't know. It's just an opinion. Why does everything have to be an argument?

Linda.

tomsakic · Post by **tomsakic** » Tue Jul 26, 2005 11:02 am

I don't know anymore about this ongoing Madeleine matter. I know some people who don't like it. Like my sister calling "There's some strange bad Dance Me... cover on radio...", or my other friend, who's singing jazz professionally: "I can't listen to dead Billie" (day after I gave her CD as gift)...
And I am not fan either.

Tchocolatl · Post by **Tchocolatl** » Tue Jul 26, 2005 2:51 pm

Linda, in my eyes this is a discussion, but as you obviously do not take into consideration other point of view than yours as well as you are not questionning your own beliefs by comparing what you think with some other facts, I guess any discussion you have must turned into "argument". What can I do? Just laugh about all this. OK. Let say that is she practice a lot with a hair brush she could win the next Elvis sosie context. Now. No other "argument".

Tom to like or not like is another matter. Tastes are personal and subjective, not to be discussed.

Anyway, she has a forum and here....

tomsakic · Post by **tomsakic** » Wed Jul 27, 2005 10:49 am

I know, Tchoco, de gustibus...

linda_lakeside · Post by **linda_lakeside** » Wed Jul 27, 2005 1:41 pm

Exactly, Tom, de gustibus non est disputandum...

Tchocolatl · Post by **Tchocolatl** » Wed Jul 27, 2005 3:10 pm

Yep!

Linda should you have told me from the beginning that you just don't like her and that's all, I would not went into any discussion. I would have say what I say when some people tell me they do not like LC : Good! it makes more for me!