The guitarist, singer and songwriter Melody Gardot was born in New Jersey in 1985. She took piano lessons and, as a teenager, performed in small venues in and around Philadelphia. She was studying fashion and art at the Community College of Philadelphia in 2003 when she was hit by an SUV while riding a bicycle. She suffered pelvic, spinal and head injuries and ended up in a hospital bed for almost one year. Initially, she could neither walk nor talk and was hypersensitive to light and sound. A doctor suggested music therapy. Lying in bed with a plaster cast, she learned to play the guitar, sing and compose.
While still in her hospital bed, she wrote and recorded songs that would become her first recording, the 2005 EP Some Lessons: The Bedroom Sessions. The local, then regional notoriety Gardot gained quickly led to her being signed by Universal Music in 2006. Her full-length debut album Worrisome Heart followed in 2007 on the Verve label to warm critical response.
Her breakthrough came in 2009 with her second Verve album My One and Only Thrill, which quickly sold over half a million copies in Europe and Japan, more than 10 times her sales in the United States. The album peaked at number 2 on Billboard’s U.S. Jazz Albums charts, secured three Grammy nominations and sold 1.5 million times worldwide until today.
Pain after a tragic cycling accident, caused by an SUV driver who made an illegal left turn, led to beauty and love in the songs of Melody Gardot.
The Essential Melody Gardot, released in December 2024 by Decca, offers 24 of her best songs on two CDs or Vinyl. Accept cookies — we receive a commission; price unchanged — and order the double-CD or Vinyl from Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.fr, Amazon.de.
Melody Gardot. Photo copyright Laurence Laborie/Universal Music Group.
The Essential Melody Gardot contains 24-tracks selected by the guitarist, singer and songwriter herself. She noted: “I tried to create a vibe as one would with a set list, especially for the vinyl, so that each side has a mood”. Indeed. I would describe the first CD as a mix of jazz-pop, pop-jazz ballads, often with a bossa nova touch written by herself, complemented by three French chansons composed by Jacques Brel, Edith Piaf and one again written by Melody Gardot herself.
The Essential Melody Gardot offers a selection ranging from her major label debut Worrisome Heart (2008) to her collaboration with Brazilian pianist Philippe Powell, Entre eux deux (2022). It includes a few are special remixes or versions that have not been readily available, such as her half-sung, half-spoken rendition of Elton John’s “Love Song”, originally released on her 2020 album Sunset in the Blue, with trumpeter Ibrahim Maalouf contributing emotive filigree.
The first track on CD 1 is “Baby I’m a Fool” from her second album, My One and Only Thrill. According to herself, it is about “two coquette people who won’t admit they are in love with each other”. This smooth jazz-pop ballad is pure love.
The second, joyful jazz-pop song, “If The Stars Were Mine”, also originally released in 2009, shows a strong bossa nova influence. It is followed by “C’est Magnifique”, written by Dadi Carvalho, Melody Gardot and Pierre Aderne. The vocals are in French and Portugese and feature a duet by Melody Gardot and the Portuguese singer and songwriter António Zambujo, again with a bossa nova flair and a jazz feeling.
The fourth track, “Morning Sun”, written by Melody Gardot, with the words “don’t you cry”, is a powerful ballad about how to overcome difficulties. Despite the dark lines, “This world wasn’t made for dreaming, this world wasn’t made for you”, the song’s mood is optimistic.
Melody Gardot. Photo copyright Laurence Laborie/Universal Music Group.
Other songs on CD 1 are the bluesy, catchy “Sweet Memory”, the latin jazz “Mira”, a gentle, light and joyful version of the classic “Over The Rainbow” as well as, after a quiet start, a cool and relaxed “Worrisome Heart”, great notably thanks to Matt Cappy on trumpet and Ron Kerber on tenor saxophone.
The ballad “Our Love Is Easy” sounds a little too simple, too cheesy. The cool “Love Song”, featuring Ibrahim Maalouf on trumpet, is more convincing. Her rendition of the great classic “La chanson des vieux amants” is elegant, whereas her restrained interpretation of “La Vie enRose” cannot keep up with Edith Piaf’s. The life version of her own composition, “Les Etoiles”, is rousing, thrilling, full of joie de vivre.
The CD 2 offers eleven songs. It starts with the enchanting ballad “First Song”, a delicate reading of an Abbey Lincoln/Charlie Haden composition that was the product of a magic moment of inspiration in the studio. The next track I really like is number 6: “Your Heart Is As Black As Night”, written by the Melody Gardot, with, among others, Bryan Rogers on tenor saxophone and Patrick Hughes on trumpet.
In total four concert recordings add live punch to The Essential Melody Gardot, capturing the fun and immediacy of her shows. Melody Gardot stated: “I love the vulnerability of a live performance”. She added: “It’s raw and honest.”
The songs “If I Tell You I Love You”, “Who Will Comfort Me” and “Love Me Like A River Does” are entertaining, the last one in addition swinging. “Bad News” is rough, rocking, bluesy, with great drum and guitar performances.
Two tunes on The Essential Melody Gardot have not been previously released. Among them is “La Llorona”, a haunting Mexican ballad. Melody Gardot chose to perform it to an appreciative live crowd in Mallorca in 2019 with gentle guitar-and-cello accompaniment.
The Essential Melody Gardot, released in December 2024 by Decca, offers 24 of her best songs on two CDs or Vinyls. Accept cookies — we receive a commission; price unchanged — and order the double-CD or Vinyl from Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.fr, Amazon.de.
Melody Gardot. Photo copyright Laurence Laborie/Universal Music Group.
Melody Gardot. Photo copyright Laurence Laborie/Universal Music Group.
CD review added on January 16, 2025 at 22:10 Swiss time.
