I was recently alerted to a new talent on the music scene, and what a talent!
Melody Gardot is a young jazz singer from Pennsylvania, and the circumstances by which she came to prominence are indeed unusual. Following a catastrophic road accident which left her nervous system severely damaged, Miss Gardot created music while semi-paralysed in her hospital bed.
When these recordings came to the attention of the local university radio station, they went into publicity overdrive, and she soon landed a record deal. Her first album Worrisome Heart was hugely successful in the US jazz charts, and earlier this year - with the able assistance of musical arranger Vince Mendoza, who has worked with Robbie Williams, Björk, Elvis Costello, and Joni Mitchell - she released a brilliant second album My One and Only Thrill.
Here are two fabulous tracks from that album. Her voice, and the orchestral arrangements, are sublime! Enjoy...
Melody Gardot on MySpace
