Half the Perfect World

Careless Love When Madeleine Peyroux's debut, Dreamland, was released in 1996, its success threw her for a loop. She's taken eight years to create this follow-up, and, at age 30, she brings a confidence and resilience to this dozen-song set. She's able to move seamlessly between songs by write...	Dreamland	Not Too Late Although the music of Norah Jones continues to blend pop, soul, folk, and country with a seasoning of jazz, her third album for Blue Note is the first where she's written (or collaborated on) all the material. Beneath the smooth surface lie darker strains on the album-opening "...	From This Moment On This album appears in the footsteps of 2004's The Girl in the Other Room but doesn't sound like a follow-up. Whereas The Girl saw the pianist-singer abandon the Great American Songbook for more personal pastures, From This Moment On sees her working out on standards done in trad...	Corinne Bailey Rae When soul music is at its finest, a great vocalist can take you along on a journey into their sadness, loneliness, joy, and passion. When mixing that voice with horns, harmonies, and a bluesy Hammond organ, that same music can seamlessly travel across decades. Many new artists cl...
Got You on My Mind Got you on my mind is the collaboration between chanteuse Madeleine Peyroux and harmonica virtuoso/ guitarist William Galison, with whom she has toured extensively in recent years. On Ms. Peyroux's first recording since Deamland, Madeleine and William cover a wide variety of t...	Back to Black Amy Winehouse's second album, Back to Black, is one of the finest soul albums, British or otherwise, to come out for years. Frank, her first album, was a sparse and stripped-down affair; Back to Black, meanwhile, is neither of these things. This time around, she's taken her inspi...	Hey Eugene! After a seven-year gap between their first and second albums, Pink Martini have brought forth their third long-player just over two and a half years later. Based in Portland, Oregon, this dazzling 12-piece ensemble are led by pianist Thomas Lauderdale and fronted by vocalist Chin...	West Though the arrangements stray from Lucinda Williams's motherlode blend of blues, country, and folk, West may well be her best album. It is easily her most musically adventurous, and often her most lyrically inspired. Williams's singing has never sounded better, from the aching te...	Sympathique While the cocktail lounge fad has seen more than a few musicians climb aboard as a career move, the members of Pink Martini are no bandwagon-riding aficionados. Fronted by pianist Thomas Lauderdale, Pink Martini is the real article--a band that approaches the music with unwave...

Almost perfect
Peyroux is one jazz chanteuse with mass appeal - her mix of new tunes and familiar covers are seamlessly put together to a cohesive whole. Her own compositions like 'I'm Alright' fit right into the blend, with singer-songwriter classics like Tom Waits's '(Looking for) the Heart of Saturday Night' and Joni Mitchell's 'River' (on which k.d. lang guests to give some street cred), along with jazz standards like 'Summer Wind' popularised by Frank Sinatra in the 60s.

relaxing and enjoyable
I heard Smile on my satellite radio so I decided to buy this cd and another one of hers. I have yet to take this cd out of my car and it has been several weeks.

Better late than not at all...
i guess i am the last person on this planet to hear of Madeleine Peyroux, matter of fact it was last week. i just went over the top with excitement and ordered Half the Perfect World and Careless Love immediately. opinions, someone once said, are like "a. holes" (if you know what i'm referring to) and everybody has at least one and so here we are trying to make a statement about Madeleine Peyroux's talent. say whatever you will and think whatever you like and on the bottom line it really doesn't matter one bit because what is is and what is not is not. Madeleine is not Billy Holiday, though she sounds like her on some recordings and so what if she does? this woman is a bona fide original artist of the first rank and her songs are distinct and reflect an artistry above mediocre, fake run of the mill modern day copy cats who hide behind time honored musical standards for lack of genuine talent. Madeleine's songs are unlike the copy formats and her renditions are arranged and played in a unique style, a blend of many different musical elements from different artist, traditions and eras. her uniqueness is obvious in that she is able to blend these elements into a new and distinct style all her own, unlike anybody else. the songs are arranged with a ensemble that perfectly complement her singing and playing style and the flavor of the song itself. the simplicity of it all highlights the " what is needed, what is best no more or no less" this avoids the tendency to clutter up the recording with fake appendages and electronic guizmo insertions to cover up for the lack of real talent. no, Madeleine is real, fresh, new and unspoiled by the greed for fortune and fake fame. lets just sit back and enjoy this sweet talent and accept it on its own merit without trying to remake it in our own critical image which, as i said already, does not matter one iota. those who criticize are themselves unknown by name and no doubt lacking in any measure of talent and fame; therefore, why don't all of you who have something negative to say,just shut the f. up!!! reggio/chicago

Michelle Peyroux Half The Perfect World
This cd is delightfully lyrical with songs I enjoy even while reading. Not too intrusive, the music lingers, however, in one's memory. I have played it frequently, sometimes listening to the lyrics and other times, reading.. I heard Ms. Peyroux while shopping in a local health food store. Asked the sales person who the singer was and then I ordered it from Amazon. End of story. Anna Seidler....

Dissapointing after her others
I really like Peyroux's first two albums - she has a lovely voice - but this one left me cold. The first track is very good, and the title track isn't bad - almost everything else is dull and lifeless. Some of the covers are frankly awful. If you are coming to this artist for the first time I strong advise you to try Careless Love or Dreamland dreamland first. This one seems to have been airbrushed to smooth out anything interesting.