Caro Emerald is something of a sensation in her native Holland where this stunning debut has spent a record breaking 27 weeks at No.1. It’s no fluke. A trained jazz vocalist, with a natural and instinctive voice, she is clearly equally at ease with big-band swing, mambo, rumba, lounge and sundry other styles.
But this is no mere exercise in retro-styling for the sake of it. With a punchy rhythm section and drums placed high in the mix, you’d swear you were listing to yet another Mark Ronson project. What’s more, Emerald herself brings an Amy Winehouse-like sensibility to a set of irresistibly catchy numbers, except without the falling down element: the sultry groove of ‘Back It Up’, the toe-tapping ‘You Don’t Love Me’ and the Latin flavoured ‘A Night like This’ are especially impressive. Caro Emerald has already repeated her home success in France. She is certain to be huge around these parts. Mark my words...
KEY TRACK: ‘A NIGHT LIKE THIS’