Lauren Bush: Tide Rises
An awesome bossa nova and arrangements from swinging to R&B by the UK/Canadian vocalist
As long as she still has lyrics about skating on outdoor rinks, UK-based Lauren Bush will still come through as the Vancouver Island-raised Canadian we know her to be. Tide Rises is her latest album, changing the colour palette completely from her previous, Dream Away – alongside which she appeared on the Rhythm Changes Podcast:
Will Chernoff
Sometimes you hear people make crossover albums and toss in just enough material from the jazz tradition to appease people or playlists. But Lauren does the reverse here, stacking her album with undeniably vocal-jazz moments. There's the swinging of "Nobody Else But Me", "Happier On My Own" where the melody just flies by and accelerates with Martin Shaw's easygoing trumpet into the blowing, and of course "Joy Spring" off the top with Lauren's adept vocalese rendition.
Then the gooey R&B and electric bass of "Tide Rises" and a contemporary take on Joni Mitchell's "Circle Game" are those crossover songs, where Lauren explores other sounds with these musicians. The keyboardist Liam Dunachie is all over every style, defining the album's map and taking the lead role in arrangements like "Circle Game".
Then there's one track that blew me away. "Madrugada", what a bossa nova. The production doesn't try to copy Jobim and Gilberto, but the feel is certainly spot-on. The ensemble supports Lauren wherever she takes them on Tide Rises, and the vocalist returns the favour, sounding at home within all the stops along the way.
Tide Rises: Joy Spring; Tide Rises; Madrugada; Circle Game; Easy Does It; Nobody Else But Me; Happier On My Own; Oh What A Beautiful Morning; This Is Always; Only You. (54:52)
Personnel: Lauren Bush on vocals; Liam Dunachie on piano & Rhodes; Dave Manington on upright bass (1,4,5,8); Conor Chaplin on upright bass (3,6,7,10) & electric bass (2); David Ingamells on drums; Nick Costley-White on guitar (2,3,6,10); Martin Shaw on Trumpet (7)
