All songs by Simon Wallace and Fran Landesman.

Peter Quinn, JAZZWISE
'A winning combination of first-rate songwriting, a compelling storytelling gift and a band which expertly charts the narrative ebb and flow, this fifth album from vocalist Sarah Moule once again returns to the gold mine of 300-plus songs penned by her husband, Simon Wallace, and the lyricist Fran Landesman (1927-2011) over an 18-year period. Ten of the 12 songs featured here receive their debut recording. The album opens with one of the great lists songs, ‘Nothing Is Mine Now’, which the duo completed on the day Landesman passed away in July 2011, and closes with the hushed intimacy of the title track, penned on the day the duo first met in 1993.

The song settings are impressively varied, ranging from the vast sonic space opened up by ‘After The Fall’ and the swinging ‘Fool’s Gold’ to the heart-melting delicacy of ‘The Long Arm Of Love’ and the subtle metrical shifts of ‘On Hold/Living In Limbo’. As evidenced by ‘Time Is The Beast’ Landesman is no stranger to the striking couplet (‘Time is the beast, feasting on beauty’s face, biting the dancer’s ankle, trumping the hero’s ace’). The set features a terrific central performance by Moule, who sings throughout with complete conviction and technical command, not to mention freshness and insight. Produced, recorded and mixed by Wallace, whose immaculate playing squeezes the bitter-sweetness out of every note the album features pitch-perfect contributions from a number of other long-time musical collatorators.'


Matthew Ruddick, KINDOFJAZZ
'Sarah Moule delivers a gorgeous collection of songs by Fran Landesman and Simon Wallace.

We’ve been blessed with some amazing female jazz vocal albums this year, and this is another to add to the collection. The album is comprised of twelve songs composed by the wonderful lyricist, Fran Landesman, in conjunction with pianist – and Sarah Moule‘s husband – Simon Wallace. Landesman is still best known for writing songs like Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most and The Ballad Of The Sad Young Men, but her writing was always exemplary, with a subtle, literary feel to her songs that adds a real depth. She formed an amazing bond with Wallace, and the two of them got together every week for the best part of twenty years, writing over 300 songs together.

Ten of the twelve songs here are previously unrecorded. You might be forgiven for wondering if the quality might dip on some of the unreleased songs, but they’re all absolute gems that reveal more with each listen. Are We Just Having Fun? addresses a serious question that we have all faced at one time or another, the magnificent A Magician’s Confession, who confesses that “he can’t bring back the snows of yesteryear”, and the amazing On Hold/Living In Limbo, two songs that blend seamlessly and deserve to be better known.

Listen to On Hold/Living In Limbo here:

On every song, there are wonderful one-liners; on Truly Unruly, for example: “Let’s give way to desire, you can thrill me to tears, Let’s be wayward and wanton without fears.”

These songs must be a joy for a singer to interpret, and Moule delivers a masterclass, her warm, velvety voice bringing each song to life, and sounding effortless across a range of emotions and tempos.

She is helped, of course, by some fitting arrangement by Wallace, and a fine band. The band is comprised of Simon Wallace on piano, Mick Hutton on double bass, Paul Robinson on drums, for the most part at least – although Neville Malcom plays bass on four tracks, with Rod Youngs on drums. There are also appearances by Nigel Price on guitar and Mark Lockheart, who delivers a fine soprano sax solo on Close To Tears – another highlight.

These songs were written over a period of eighteen years, and include the first and last songs that Landesman and Wallace wrote together; hopefully there are some more unreleased songs to look forward to next time around. Highly recommended.'




JAZZWAX Review

'Back in February 2014, I posted the following: “If many of today’s jazz musicians and singers lack anything, it’s curiosity. Talent they’ve got, but a deep interest in the past beyond what they already know seems alien to their approach… What’s hurting the music isn’t a lack of venues or long solos. It’s a lack of imagination and a stubborn refusal to explore the music’s history and re-interpret compelling, overlooked songs. For example, the music of Tommy Wolf and his range of lyricists, including Fran Landesman, could use a revisit.”

I didn’t personally know English vocalist Sarah Moule back then, but it seems we’ve been on the same page for some time. Her gorgeous new album is Stormy Emotions: Songs by Fran Landesman & Simon Wallace. Landesman was an exquisite lyricist who moved in 1950 to St. Louis, Mo., with her husband Jay, where he launched the Crystal Palace nightclub. Fran began writing song lyrics in 1952. When she finished Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most, the Crystal Palace’s house pianist Tommy Wolf wrote music to her words.

Then one night, Wolf’s pals, Jackie Cain and Roy Kral (above), just happened to be appearing in town. As Jackie told me in a 2009 interview, they dropped by the club and Tommy shared the song with them. Jackie and Roy were the first to record it in 1955 and the rest is history. Landesman then wrote a long list of sophisticated jazz standards with Wolf that come with a knowing wink, including Ballad of the Sad Young Men, How Do You Like Your Love, Say Cheese and Listen Little Girl.

In 1994, Landesman met British composer Simon Wallace (above) and collaborated with him for the remainder of her career on upward of 300 songs. Simon is a celebrated British composer with an extensive list of glorious songs to his name as well as a bounty of themes for English films and BBC television shows.

Then in 1999, Landesman (above) began working closely with English singer Sarah Moule. In 2002, Sarah released an album of Landesman-Wallace collaborations on It’s a Nice Thought. Sarah’s next three albums featured 27 more Landesman-Wallace songs. Did I tell you that Sarah is married to Simon Wallace?

Which brings us to Stormy Emotions, featuring another dozen beckoning Landesman-Wallace compositions. Sarah has such a warm, sophisticated voice and just the right phrasing for this material. The songs are conversational in nature and singing them requires a stage performer’s intimacy and sensibility. They’re best served vulnerable, which Sarah manages with savvy yearning and a flexible, powerful voice. Simon’s music changes like an English sky and hangs on to the ear, whether it’s a waltz (Nothing Is Mine Now), a mid-tempo blues (Truly Unruly), a ballad (After the Fall) or a whimsical song with a lyric twist (On Hold/Living in Limbo). Landesman’s lyrics, of course, are precious.

On the album, Sarah is joined on all tracks by Simon’s piano—plus bassist Mick Hutton (tracks 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11), bassist Neville Malcolm (1, 2, 5, 6), drummer Paul Robinson (3, 4, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11), drummer Rod Youngs (1, 2, 5, 6), guitarist Nigel Price (1, 6, 7, 8) and saxophonist and bass clarinetist Mark Lockheart (2, 4, 9).

Sarah and Simon make a terrific couple. It’s almost as if Landeman’s lyrics were written to keep them together and in love. Landesman said it best: ” I got lucky meeting Simon. That he married Sarah Moule was a bonus. She’s the jazz vocalist par excellence.”

Fran Landesman died in 2011.'