Sunset in the Blue

Sunset in the Blue is the fifth studio album by American singer and songwriter Melody Gardot.[11] It was recorded both in the US and in Europe. It was produced by Larry Klein and released on October 23, 2020, by Decca Records.

Sunset in the Blue
Studio album by Melody Gardot
Released	October 23, 2020
Studio	Abbey Road, London AIR (Lyndhurst), London Capitol, Los Angeles Cherrytree, US Henson, Los Angeles II Palagio, Italy Les Studios Saint Germain, Paris Metropolis, London
Genre	Jazz
Length	56:27
Label	Decca
Producer	Larry Klein
Melody Gardot chronology
Live in Europe (2018) Sunset in the Blue (2020)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
All About Jazz	[1]
AllMusic	[2]
The Arts Desk	[3]
DownBeat	[4]
Jazz Journal	[5]
laut.de	[6]
Mojo	[7]
musicOMH	[8]
The Philadelphia Inquirer	[9]
The Yorkshire Times	[10]

Background

The album is a collection of originals and standards; the bonus track "Little Something" features Sting. The tracks are her performances recorded with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.[12] For one song, "From Paris with Love", she invited unemployed musicians from around the world (United States, Armenia, South Korea, Japan, Australia, Brazil, Norway, and others) to record their parts in their homes and then to send their recordings to her electonically. Gardot insisted that the musicians were paid fees related to a standard UK musicians studio wage in order to compensate for their time and expertise.[13] Said Gardot, "It is so important that we come together in this moment where there is a deafening silence happening in the arts...we are part of one large family (artists, musicians, singers, painters...) and this album is a testament to that collaborative spirit; a smorgasbord of talent all in one place, and living proof, that even now, we can use the numerous resources we have to break traditional ways of thinking about recordings, if just for the simple sake of continuing to move forward and create great music..."[14] Of his duet with Gardot, Sting commented, "This new song... has a simple and infectious joy, and it was so much fun to trade vocals with the exquisite Melody Gardot I hope you can hear the smile in our voices."[12]

A bonus edition of the album was released in France and Japan featuring two additional songs. An orchestral arrangement of "La Chanson Des Vieux Amants", which is different than the version that Gardot contributed to the Brel: Ces Gens-La tribute album, and the collaboration "Little Something" (with Sting) that also appears on Sting's 2020 Duets album. An unreleased version of "Wayfaring Stranger" was recorded but has not been released. A video of this recording session was provided to Mix With The Masters[15] as part of their programming and is currently still available to view with a membership.

Reception

Liz Thomson of The Arts Desk stated, "What a pick-me-up this album is. Released as the days darken, literally and metaphorically, it's a real joy – a transport of delight to dappled squares in Paris or Lisbon, or a street party in Rio. Sunset in the Blue is billed as "an orchestral celebration of Melody Gardot's jazz roots" but the abiding sound that remains in the mind's ear after the album's finished is that of a jazz guitar, played with a bossa nova rhythm."[3] AllMusic review by Matt Collar commented, "With 2020's Sunset in the Blue singer Melody Gardot sinks into a dusky and languorously produced album that builds upon her love of jazz standards, Brazilian music, and intimate balladry. The record finds Gardot surrounded by a production dream team, including longtime associate Larry Klein... From beginning to end, Gardot's Sunset in the Blue holds you in its deeply rapturous glow."[2]

John Murphy of musicOMH added, "Technically, it's an impressive achievement. Listening to it, you'd swear that the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra were in the same studio as Gardot, rather than virtually accompanying her. While there's nothing particularly challenging about Sunset In The Blue, there's no denying that Gardot has become something of an expert in this kind of thing: originals, covers and old standards all performed in the best possible taste."[8] Atwood Magazine observed, "Oscillating between languages, based on their natural cadence and feel on her tongue, Gardot helps us to experience the varied rhythms and flows of each dialect as if they were each a separate musical instrument, capable of expressing different emotions with each sound... As an album, Sunset In The Blue is nuanced with many of the same stratum that make up Gardot herself. An equal balance of vivid culture, romantic verse and vintage class, it’s almost a microcosm of the artist herself."[13]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"If You Love Me"	Dadi Carvalho Melody Gardot	4:35
2.	"C'est Magnifique"	Carvalho Melody Gardot Pierre Aderne	4:53
3.	"There Where He Lives in Me"	Gardot Philippe Baden Powell Aderne	5:49
4.	"Love Song"	Lesley Duncan	3:58
5.	"You Won't Forget Me"	Fred Spielman Kermit Goell	6:05
6.	"Sunset in the Blue"	Jesse Harris Gardot	4:33
7.	"Um Beijo"	Gardot	4:06
8.	"Ninguém, Ninguém"	Gardot	3:38
9.	"From Paris with Love"	Gardot Aderne	4:47
10.	"Ave Maria"	Gardot Reese Richardson	4:28
11.	"Moon River"	Henry Mancini Johnny Mercer	3:48
12.	"I Fall in Love Too Easily"	Jule Styne Sammy Cahn	3:10
13.	"Little Something (with Sting)" (Bonus Track)	Antoine Chatenet Conor Blake Dominic Miller Hilda Stenmalm Gardot Nora Abakar Sting	2:41
Total length:			56:27

French/Japan Edition[16]

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
12.	"La Chanson Des Vieux Amants" (Bonus Track)	Gerard Jounnest Jacques Brel	6:59
13.	"Little Something (with Sting)" (Bonus Track)	Antoine Chatenet Conor Blake Dominic Miller Hilda Stenmalm Gardot Nora Abakar Sting	2:41

Charts

Chart (2020)	Peak position
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[17]	13
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[18]	43
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[19]	22
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[20]	69
French Albums (SNEP)[21]	18
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[22]	27
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[23]	88
Polish Albums (ZPAV)[24]	38
Portuguese Albums (AFP)[25]	10
Scottish Albums (OCC)[26]	15
Swedish Jazz Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[27]	3
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[28]	10
UK Albums (OCC)[29]	40
US Current Album Sales (Billboard)[30]	70
US Top Jazz Albums (Billboard)[31]	11
US Traditional Jazz Albums (Billboard)[32]	9

References

1. Gudell, Scott (January 25, 2021). "Melody Gardot: Sunset in the Blue album review @ All About Jazz". All About Jazz. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
2. Collar, Matt. "Sunset in the Blue – Melody Gardot". AllMusic. Retrieved November 22, 2020.
3. Thomson, Liz (October 22, 2020). "Album: Melody Gardot – Sunset in the Blue". The Arts Desk. Retrieved November 22, 2020.
4. De Barrons, Paul (January 2021). "Melody Gardot: Sunset In The Blue". DownBeat. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
5. Lomax, Ian (December 19, 2020). "Melody Gardot: Sunset In The Blue". Jazz Journal. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
6. Kausse, Philipp. "So anspruchsvoll kann Easy Listening sein" (in German). laut.de. Retrieved December 4, 2020.
7. "Melody Gardot - Sunset In The Blue". Album of The Year. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
8. Murphy, John (October 23, 2020). "Melody Gardot – Sunset In The Blue | Album Reviews". musicOMH. Retrieved November 22, 2020.
9. Klinge, Steve (October 23, 2020). "Black Thought's first official album is 34 minutes of rich, sublime rhymes". The Philadephia Inquirer. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
10. Clark, Graham (November 14, 2020). "Melody Gardot- Sunset In The Blue (Decca Records)". The Yorkshire Times. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
11. Shaffer, Claire (September 4, 2020). "Sting, Melody Gardot Duet on New Song 'Little Something'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
12. "Melody Gardot Releases 'Sunset In The Blue' - The First Session at Abbey Road After Lockdown". Abbey Road Studios. October 26, 2020. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
13. Kalish, Ilana (December 1, 2020). "Interview: Melody Gardot's 'Sunset in the Blue', an Open Window Amongst Closed Doors". Atwood Magazine. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
14. "NEW MELODY GARDOT ALBUM, SUNSET IN THE BLUE, OUT NOW". Umusic.ca. Retrieved December 7, 2020.
15. "Recording a Band #5 | Mix With The Masters". mixwiththemasters.com. Retrieved January 30, 2021.
16. "Sunset In The Blue". Amazon.fr. Retrieved February 1, 2021.
17. "Austriancharts.at – Melody Gardot – Sunset in the Blue" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
18. "Ultratop.be – Melody Gardot – Sunset in the Blue" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
19. "Ultratop.be – Melody Gardot – Sunset in the Blue" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
20. "Melody Gardot Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved December 4, 2020.
21. "Lescharts.com – Melody Gardot – Sunset in the Blue". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
22. "Offiziellecharts.de – Melody Gardot – Sunset in the Blue" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
23. サンセット・イン・ザ・ブルー | メロディ・ガルドー [Sunset in the Blue | Melody Gardot] (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved December 4, 2020.
24. "Oficjalna lista sprzedaży :: OLiS - Official Retail Sales Chart". OLiS. Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
25. "Portuguesecharts.com – Melody Gardot – Sunset in the Blue". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
26. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
27. "Veckolista Jazz, vecka 44, 2020" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
28. "Swisscharts.com – Melody Gardot – Sunset in the Blue". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
29. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
30. "Melody Gardot Chart History (Current Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
31. "Melody Gardot Chart History (Top Jazz Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
32. "Melody Gardot Chart History (Traditional Jazz Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 24, 2020.

External links

• Official website