Madeleine Peyroux
Encyclopedia
Madeleine Peyroux is an American jazz singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Peyroux (madˈlɛn pɛjˈʁu) is noted for her vocal style, which has been compared to that of Billie Holiday
.
Peyroux has cited Billie Holiday
, Bessie Smith
, Patsy Cline
, Édith Piaf
, Leonard Cohen
, Johnny Mercer
, Charlie Chaplin
, Serge Gainsbourg
and Bob Dylan
as influences on her music.
so he could pursue a career in acting. She grew up in New York City
and southern California
; when her parents divorced, she moved with her mother to Paris
at age 13. In several interviews, Peyroux described her parents as "hippies" and classifies them as "eccentric educators", which helped her to pursue a career in music. She has stated that her father would "listen to old records all the time" and her mother had a ukulele that she learned how to play while she was still a child.
s in the Latin Quarter
in Paris. She joined a group called the Riverboat Shufflers, first by passing around the hat, and then by singing. At sixteen she joined The Lost Wandering Blues and Jazz Band
and spent a number of years touring Europe performing jazz standards.
Her experiences provided the basis for her first album, Dreamland
. The album was released in 1996 by Atlantic Records
, and gained widespread attention. It featured a cover of Patsy Cline
's "Walkin' After Midnight
", Édith Piaf
's signature-song "La Vie en rose
" and two Bessie Smith
covers, among others. This first record resulted in her being referred to as the 21st century Billie Holiday, particularly owing to a "Getting Some Fun Out of Life" cover and to "Hey Sweet Man", an original song with a style highly reminiscent of Holiday. Time
called it "the most exciting, involving vocal performance by a new singer this year". Peyroux began opening for artists such as Sarah McLachlan
and Cesária Évora
, and made appearances at jazz festivals and on the Lilith Fair
tour. In 1997, she made an appearance at the Montreal Jazz Festival, where she performed with some guest artists, including James Carter
. In this concert, Madeleine performed some standards like "I Wish I Could Shimmy Like My Sister Kate", a cover included on Montreal's 30-years Best Of.
When Peyroux was scheduled to start recording again, she was diagnosed with a health problem on her vocal cords. By this time, she also had some disagreement with her record company, which led to a significant amount of time out of the spotlight and without recording.
tribute.
She sings a soulful duet, "A Fool at the Other", with American singer/songwriter Mick Reed on the album Courtney's Farm, by The Spring Valley Studs, which was released in 2003. The song appears again with the 2011 release of Mick Reed's album, Goodnight, Texas.
In May 2002, she joined multi-instrumentalist William Galison
, and together they appeared at such venues as the Bottom Line, Joe's Pub, and the Tin Angel. In 2003 the duo released a seven-song EP
entitled Got You on My Mind
, which they sold at shows and online. However, in 2003, their relationship ended. At the time, Peyroux was in negotiations with Rounder Records
and showed the EP as demo. Although Peyroux claims she told the record company it was co-written with Galison, this has resulted in an ongoing lawsuit
.
Got You on My Mind was re-released by Galison in August 2004; the original EP was expanded by the addition of four tracks by Galison.
, Peyroux was teamed with well-known record producer
Larry Klein
. In September 2004, she released her second solo album, Careless Love
, to generally positive reviews. It went on to sell over a million copies worldwide and took her out of anonymity. The album opens with one of her best-known songs, a cover of Leonard Cohen
's, "Dance Me to the End of Love
", also featuring covers of Bob Dylan
("You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go
"), Elliott Smith
("Between The Bars"), and Hank Williams ("Weary Blues"), among others. As usual, the album also contained a French track, "J'ai Deux Amours", and the only original track on the album was "Don't Wait Too Long" (in collaboration with Jesse Harris
and Larry Klein
). The songs she covered were mostly from the first half of the 20th century but her choices showed, according to several reviews, "impeccable taste".
Her third solo album, Half the Perfect World
, was released on September 12, 2006. She collaborated with several artists, including Jesse Harris, Walter Becker
, Larry Klein (who also produced the album), and k.d. lang
, with whom Peyroux performed a cover
of the Joni Mitchell
song "River". Once again, the songs were carefully chosen, and she sang covers of more contemporary artists. Notable covers include "Blue Alert" and "Half the Perfect World" by Leonard Cohen/Anjani Thomas; "Smile" by Charlie Chaplin
, John Turner
and Geoffrey Parsons; a rendition of Serge Gainsbourg
's "La Javanaise" and Tom Waits
' "(Looking for) the Heart of Saturday Night". Unlike her previous album, Half the Perfect World had four original tracks.
On September 3, 2006, Peyroux performed a live session for Live from Abbey Road
at Abbey Road Studios
. She shared her episode with the Red Hot Chili Peppers
and Snow Patrol
; it was aired in the UK on Channel 4
and in the USA on the Sundance Channel. On July 12, 2007, she was awarded Best International Jazz Artist at the BBC Jazz Awards
.
, Joe Henry
, David Batteau
, and Julian Coryell
. The album featured a sole Peyroux-penned composition, "I Must Be Saved", and its first single was "You Can't Do Me", a song with a soul-rock beat, a whole new style for the vocalist. The album received mostly favorable reviews and the lyrics were praised. After its release the singer toured in the US, Canada
, South America
, Europe
, and Asia
.
On November 23, 2009, Somethin' Grand, Peyroux's first live concert album, was released. The DVD was filmed and recorded in Los Angeles
in January 2009. Her set included nine out of the eleven songs of Bare Bones, as well some others from the previous albums. The DVD also contained a documentary
, Somethin' Grand - A Portrait of Madeleine Peyroux, which offered a glimpse of her background and history.
which is to consist mainly of her newly written songs. The album was produced by Craig Street
(Norah Jones
, k.d. Lang
, Cassandra Wilson
) and "signals a new approach for the musician as she carries her jazz sensibilities into rootsier territory".
She also offered a two-song preview of the new album: a cover of Beatles' song "Martha, My Dear" and a new original song "The Things I've Seen Today" which she co-wrote with vocalist/violinist Jenny Scheinman
. The two-track EP
was released on March 29. The album itself features contributions from Marc Ribot
on guitar/banjo, Me'shell Ndegeocello
on bass, drummer Charley Drayton
(Neil Young
, Johnny Cash
) and guitarist Chris Bruce (Seal
, John Legend
). The album was released on June 6, 2011. High-profile tour dates were to follow the release of the album.
on his third album, The Great Longing, as a duo on the track "Exceptionally Ordinary". Madeleine Peyroux also covered "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning" from the Still Breathing
soundtrack and "Life Is Fine" for a Rainer Ptácek
tribute.
Peyroux is represented by American International Artists, a management group whose other artists include James Carter
and Sarah Pedinotti
.
Peyroux is an American of French descent
; she occasionally sings in French but the majority of her songs are in English
.
The ballad "Don't Wait Too Long
" was featured in an American national television ad campaign for Dockers
San Francisco brand apparel and the entire song played over the closing credits of the movie The Answer Man, released in 2008. The song was also played in Last Holiday with Queen Latifah. A clip of her recording of "Blue Alert" was used in an Old Navy
jeans advertisement in 2007. The song "A Prayer" from the album Dreamland was featured in the closing credits in the HBO television series Deadwood
in the episode "E.B. Was Left Out".
Articles & Media
Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday was an American jazz singer and songwriter. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and musical partner Lester Young, Holiday had a seminal influence on jazz and pop singing...
.
Peyroux has cited Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday was an American jazz singer and songwriter. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and musical partner Lester Young, Holiday had a seminal influence on jazz and pop singing...
, Bessie Smith
Bessie Smith
Bessie Smith was an American blues singer.Sometimes referred to as The Empress of the Blues, Smith was the most popular female blues singer of the 1920s and 1930s...
, Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline , born Virginia Patterson Hensley in Gore, Virginia, was an American country music singer who enjoyed pop music crossover success during the era of the Nashville sound in the early 1960s...
, Édith Piaf
Édith Piaf
Édith Piaf , born Édith Giovanna Gassion, was a French singer and cultural icon who became widely regarded as France's greatest popular singer. Her singing reflected her life, with her specialty being ballads...
, Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen
Leonard Norman Cohen, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, poet and novelist. Cohen published his first book of poetry in Montreal in 1956 and his first novel in 1963. His work often explores religion, isolation, sexuality and interpersonal relationships...
, Johnny Mercer
Johnny Mercer
John Herndon "Johnny" Mercer was an American lyricist, songwriter and singer. He is best known as a lyricist, but he also composed music. He was also a popular singer who recorded his own songs as well as those written by others...
, Charlie Chaplin
Charlie Chaplin
Sir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin, KBE was an English comic actor, film director and composer best known for his work during the silent film era. He became the most famous film star in the world before the end of World War I...
, Serge Gainsbourg
Serge Gainsbourg
Serge Gainsbourg, born Lucien Ginsburg was a French singer-songwriter, actor and director. Gainsbourg's extremely varied musical style and individuality make him difficult to categorize...
and Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
as influences on her music.
Early life
Peyroux's family was in academia. When Peyroux was six, her father moved the family to BrooklynBrooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
so he could pursue a career in acting. She grew up in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and southern California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
; when her parents divorced, she moved with her mother to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
at age 13. In several interviews, Peyroux described her parents as "hippies" and classifies them as "eccentric educators", which helped her to pursue a career in music. She has stated that her father would "listen to old records all the time" and her mother had a ukulele that she learned how to play while she was still a child.
Early career and Dreamland
Peyroux started singing at the age of fifteen, when she discovered street musicianBusking
Street performance or busking is the practice of performing in public places, for gratuities, which are generally in the form of money and edibles...
s in the Latin Quarter
Latin Quarter
Latin Quarter is a part of the 5th arrondissement in Paris.Latin Quarter may also refer to:* Latin Quarter , a British pop/rock band* Latin Quarter , a 1945 British film*Latin Quarter, Aarhus, part of Midtbyen, Aarhus C, Denmark...
in Paris. She joined a group called the Riverboat Shufflers, first by passing around the hat, and then by singing. At sixteen she joined The Lost Wandering Blues and Jazz Band
The Lost Wandering Blues and Jazz Band
The Lost & Wandering Blues and Jazz Band is a group of street musicians playing a variety of musical styles on washtub bass, trumpet, and guitar. The band consists of Daniel William Fitzgerald, Eugene Semyon Clarke, David Alexander Shore, Madeleine Peyroux, and Frank Schaap.-Band members:Daniel...
and spent a number of years touring Europe performing jazz standards.
Her experiences provided the basis for her first album, Dreamland
Dreamland (Madeleine Peyroux album)
Dreamland is the first album by singer, songwriter, and guitarist Madeleine Peyroux; it was released in 1996.-Track listing:-Personnel:*Madeleine Peyroux — guitar, vocals*James Carter — bass clarinet, tenor saxophone...
. The album was released in 1996 by Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
, and gained widespread attention. It featured a cover of Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline , born Virginia Patterson Hensley in Gore, Virginia, was an American country music singer who enjoyed pop music crossover success during the era of the Nashville sound in the early 1960s...
's "Walkin' After Midnight
Walkin' After Midnight
"Walkin' After Midnight" is a song by written by Alan Block and Donn Hecht and originally recorded by American country music artist Patsy Cline. The song was originally given to pop singer Kay Starr; however, it was rejected by her record label. The song was left unused until Hecht rediscovered the...
", Édith Piaf
Édith Piaf
Édith Piaf , born Édith Giovanna Gassion, was a French singer and cultural icon who became widely regarded as France's greatest popular singer. Her singing reflected her life, with her specialty being ballads...
's signature-song "La Vie en rose
La vie en rose
"La Vie en Rose" was the signature song of French singer Édith Piaf.-Signature song of Édith Piaf:Édith Piaf first popularized La Vie en Rose in 1946. The lyrics were written by Piaf and the melody of the song by "Louiguy" . Initially, Piaf's peers and her songwriting team did not think the song...
" and two Bessie Smith
Bessie Smith
Bessie Smith was an American blues singer.Sometimes referred to as The Empress of the Blues, Smith was the most popular female blues singer of the 1920s and 1930s...
covers, among others. This first record resulted in her being referred to as the 21st century Billie Holiday, particularly owing to a "Getting Some Fun Out of Life" cover and to "Hey Sweet Man", an original song with a style highly reminiscent of Holiday. Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
called it "the most exciting, involving vocal performance by a new singer this year". Peyroux began opening for artists such as Sarah McLachlan
Sarah McLachlan
Sarah Ann McLachlan, OC, OBC is a Canadian musician, singer and songwriter. Known for her emotional ballads and mezzo-soprano vocal range, as of 2006, she has sold over 40 million albums worldwide. McLachlan's best-selling album to date is Surfacing, for which she won two Grammy Awards and four...
and Cesária Évora
Cesária Évora
Cesária Évora is a Cape Verdean popular singer. Nicknamed the "barefoot diva" for performing without shoes, Évora is perhaps the best internationally known practitioner of "morna."-Early life:...
, and made appearances at jazz festivals and on the Lilith Fair
Lilith Fair
Lilith Fair was a concert tour and travelling music festival, founded by Canadian musician Sarah McLachlan, Nettwerk Music Group's Dan Fraser and Terry McBride, and New York talent agent Marty Diamond. It took place during the summers of 1997 to 1999, and was revived in the summer of 2010. It...
tour. In 1997, she made an appearance at the Montreal Jazz Festival, where she performed with some guest artists, including James Carter
James Carter (musician)
James Carter is an American jazz musician.Carter was born in Detroit, Michigan and learned to play there before moving to New York City. He has been prominent as a performer and recording artist on the jazz scene since the mid-1990s, playing saxophones, flute, and bass clarinet...
. In this concert, Madeleine performed some standards like "I Wish I Could Shimmy Like My Sister Kate", a cover included on Montreal's 30-years Best Of.
When Peyroux was scheduled to start recording again, she was diagnosed with a health problem on her vocal cords. By this time, she also had some disagreement with her record company, which led to a significant amount of time out of the spotlight and without recording.
1997–2003: pairing with William Galison
Peyroux spent much of the next six years busking in Paris, performing occasionally in clubs in the U.S., and generally living a low-key existence. She continued to contribute to works by other artists, but rarely appeared in clubs under her own name. In 1997, she covered the song "Life is Fine" as a Rainer PtácekRainer Ptacek
Rainer Ptacek was a Tucson, Arizona based guitarist and singer-songwriter. His guitar technique, which incorporated slide, finger-picking, tape loops and electronic manipulation, earned him admiration of some notable musicians such as Robert Plant and Billy Gibbons...
tribute.
She sings a soulful duet, "A Fool at the Other", with American singer/songwriter Mick Reed on the album Courtney's Farm, by The Spring Valley Studs, which was released in 2003. The song appears again with the 2011 release of Mick Reed's album, Goodnight, Texas.
In May 2002, she joined multi-instrumentalist William Galison
William Galison
William Galison is an American jazz musician, most famous as a harmonica player but also known as a multi-instrumentalist, singer and composer.-Early life and rise to fame:...
, and together they appeared at such venues as the Bottom Line, Joe's Pub, and the Tin Angel. In 2003 the duo released a seven-song EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
entitled Got You on My Mind
Got You on My Mind
Got You on My Mind is a jazz album by William Galison and Madeleine Peyroux, recorded in 1999, and later compiled into an album by Galison alone in 2003...
, which they sold at shows and online. However, in 2003, their relationship ended. At the time, Peyroux was in negotiations with Rounder Records
Rounder Records
Rounder Records, originally of Cambridge, Massachusetts, but now based in Burlington, Massachusetts, is a record label founded in 1970 by Ken Irwin, Bill Nowlin and Marian Leighton-Levy, while all three were still university students...
and showed the EP as demo. Although Peyroux claims she told the record company it was co-written with Galison, this has resulted in an ongoing lawsuit
Lawsuit
A lawsuit or "suit in law" is a civil action brought in a court of law in which a plaintiff, a party who claims to have incurred loss as a result of a defendant's actions, demands a legal or equitable remedy. The defendant is required to respond to the plaintiff's complaint...
.
Got You on My Mind was re-released by Galison in August 2004; the original EP was expanded by the addition of four tracks by Galison.
Careless Love (2004) and Half the Perfect World (2006)
After signing up for RounderRounder Records
Rounder Records, originally of Cambridge, Massachusetts, but now based in Burlington, Massachusetts, is a record label founded in 1970 by Ken Irwin, Bill Nowlin and Marian Leighton-Levy, while all three were still university students...
, Peyroux was teamed with well-known record producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
Larry Klein
Larry Klein
Larry Klein is a music producer, songwriter and bass guitar player, commonly known for being the frequent musical collaborator, and ex-husband, of Joni Mitchell....
. In September 2004, she released her second solo album, Careless Love
Careless Love (album)
Careless Love is a 2004 jazz album by American jazz singer Madeleine Peyroux. All the tracks are cover versions, except for "Don't Wait Too Long," which Peyroux co-wrote with Jesse Harris and Larry Klein. It is Peyroux's most critically acclaimed album so far and her song choices were praised...
, to generally positive reviews. It went on to sell over a million copies worldwide and took her out of anonymity. The album opens with one of her best-known songs, a cover of Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen
Leonard Norman Cohen, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, poet and novelist. Cohen published his first book of poetry in Montreal in 1956 and his first novel in 1963. His work often explores religion, isolation, sexuality and interpersonal relationships...
's, "Dance Me to the End of Love
Dance Me to the End of Love
"Dance Me to the End of Love" is a 1984 song by Leonard Cohen. It was first performed by Cohen, on his 1984 album Various Positions. It has since been recorded by various artists, and has been described as "trembling on the brink of becoming a standard"....
", also featuring covers of Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
("You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go
You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go
"You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go" is a song by Bob Dylan, released on his 15th studio album Blood on the Tracks in 1975.-Cover versions:*Ben Watt made a cover of the song for his 1983 debut album North Marine Drive....
"), Elliott Smith
Elliott Smith
Steven Paul "Elliott" Smith was an American singer-songwriter and musician. Smith was born in Omaha, Nebraska, raised primarily in Texas, and resided for a significant portion of his life in Portland, Oregon, where he first gained popularity...
("Between The Bars"), and Hank Williams ("Weary Blues"), among others. As usual, the album also contained a French track, "J'ai Deux Amours", and the only original track on the album was "Don't Wait Too Long" (in collaboration with Jesse Harris
Jesse Harris
Jesse Harris is a Grammy Award winning American singer-songwriter. He has collaborated with several musical artists including Norah Jones, Melody Gardot, Madeleine Peyroux, Nikki Yanofsky, and Lizz Wright.-Early life and education:...
and Larry Klein
Larry Klein
Larry Klein is a music producer, songwriter and bass guitar player, commonly known for being the frequent musical collaborator, and ex-husband, of Joni Mitchell....
). The songs she covered were mostly from the first half of the 20th century but her choices showed, according to several reviews, "impeccable taste".
Her third solo album, Half the Perfect World
Half the Perfect World
Half the Perfect World is the fourth studio album by American jazz singer Madeleine Peyroux. It was released on September 12, 2006. It peaked at #33 on the Billboard 200 albums chart and had sold 218,000 copies in the United States by December 2008....
, was released on September 12, 2006. She collaborated with several artists, including Jesse Harris, Walter Becker
Walter Becker
Walter Carl Becker is an American musician, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as the co-founder, guitarist, bassist and a co-writer of Steely Dan.-Career:...
, Larry Klein (who also produced the album), and k.d. lang
K.D. Lang
Kathryn Dawn Lang, OC , known by her stage name k.d. lang, is a Canadian pop and country singer-songwriter and occasional actress...
, with whom Peyroux performed a cover
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
of the Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell, CC is a Canadian musician, singer songwriter, and painter. Mitchell began singing in small nightclubs in her native Saskatchewan and Western Canada and then busking in the streets and dives of Toronto...
song "River". Once again, the songs were carefully chosen, and she sang covers of more contemporary artists. Notable covers include "Blue Alert" and "Half the Perfect World" by Leonard Cohen/Anjani Thomas; "Smile" by Charlie Chaplin
Charlie Chaplin
Sir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin, KBE was an English comic actor, film director and composer best known for his work during the silent film era. He became the most famous film star in the world before the end of World War I...
, John Turner
John Turner (lyricist)
John Turner was the pseudonym used by the English lyricist James John Turner Phillips.He ran the Peter Maurice Music Company whose most important lyricist was Geoffrey Parsons. The company specialized in adapting songs originally in foreign languages into the English language. He would usually...
and Geoffrey Parsons; a rendition of Serge Gainsbourg
Serge Gainsbourg
Serge Gainsbourg, born Lucien Ginsburg was a French singer-songwriter, actor and director. Gainsbourg's extremely varied musical style and individuality make him difficult to categorize...
's "La Javanaise" and Tom Waits
Tom Waits
Thomas Alan "Tom" Waits is an American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. Waits has a distinctive voice, described by critic Daniel Durchholz as sounding "like it was soaked in a vat of bourbon, left hanging in the smokehouse for a few months, and then taken outside and run over with a car."...
' "(Looking for) the Heart of Saturday Night". Unlike her previous album, Half the Perfect World had four original tracks.
On September 3, 2006, Peyroux performed a live session for Live from Abbey Road
Live from Abbey Road
Live from Abbey Road is a 12-part, one-hour performance series/documentary that began filming its first season during 2006 at Abbey Road Studios in London. Season 2 was filmed between 2007 and 2008, season 3 was filmed in 2009 and Season 4 was filmed in 2011...
at Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios is a recording studio located at 3 Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London, England. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of British music company EMI, its present owner...
. She shared her episode with the Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers is an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles in 1983. The group's musical style primarily consists of rock with an emphasis on funk, as well as elements from other genres such as punk, hip hop and psychedelic rock...
and Snow Patrol
Snow Patrol
Snow Patrol are an alternative rock band from Bangor, County Down, Northern Ireland. Formed at the University of Dundee in 1994 as an indie rock band, the band is now based in Glasgow...
; it was aired in the UK on Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
and in the USA on the Sundance Channel. On July 12, 2007, she was awarded Best International Jazz Artist at the BBC Jazz Awards
BBC Jazz Awards
The BBC Jazz Awards were set up in 2001 and had the status of one of the premier jazz awards in the UK. There were awards for Best Musician, Best Vocalist, Rising Star, Best Album, Jazz Innovation, Radio 2 Jazz Artist, Services to Jazz, Best of Jazz amongst others....
.
Bare Bones (2009)
Her fourth solo album, Bare Bones, released on March 10, 2009, was a turning point in Peyroux's career with all original tracks. The album was produced by Larry Klein and she collaborated with songwriters Walter BeckerWalter Becker
Walter Carl Becker is an American musician, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as the co-founder, guitarist, bassist and a co-writer of Steely Dan.-Career:...
, Joe Henry
Joe Henry
Joseph Lee "Joe" Henry is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. Henry's musical style spans several genres, including alt. country, rock, jazz and folk.- Early years :...
, David Batteau
David Batteau
David Batteau is an American singer-songwriter. Batteau is the son of Blanca Batteau and Dr. Dwight Wayne Batteau, of Harvard University and Tufts University. He is the brother of singer/songwriter Robin Batteau.-History:...
, and Julian Coryell
Julian Coryell
-Biography:Coryell was born in Pennsylvania in 1973 to famed jazz guitarist Larry Coryell and writer/actor /musician Julie Coryell, and grew up in Connecticut, New York and California. Coryell began playing the piano and drums at the age of 5, switched to violin at the age of 8, then to bass at the...
. The album featured a sole Peyroux-penned composition, "I Must Be Saved", and its first single was "You Can't Do Me", a song with a soul-rock beat, a whole new style for the vocalist. The album received mostly favorable reviews and the lyrics were praised. After its release the singer toured in the US, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, and Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
.
On November 23, 2009, Somethin' Grand, Peyroux's first live concert album, was released. The DVD was filmed and recorded in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
in January 2009. Her set included nine out of the eleven songs of Bare Bones, as well some others from the previous albums. The DVD also contained a documentary
Documentary
A documentary is a creative work of non-fiction, including:* Documentary film, including television* Radio documentary* Documentary photographyRelated terms include:...
, Somethin' Grand - A Portrait of Madeleine Peyroux, which offered a glimpse of her background and history.
Standing on the Rooftop (2011)
On January 4, 2011, Peyroux announced through her website that she would release a new album that spring. On March 15, she announced the actual release date to be June 14, 2011, under Decca RecordsDecca Records
Decca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....
which is to consist mainly of her newly written songs. The album was produced by Craig Street
Craig Street
Craig Street, born in Oakland, California, is a noted record producer.Craig moved with his family to Los Angeles at the age of 11, but returned to the Bay Area for his high school years. He began playing guitar at age 14, playing in a number of Berkeley bands...
(Norah Jones
Norah Jones
Norah Jones is an American singer-songwriter and occasional actress.In 2002, she launched her solo music career with the release of the commercially successful and critically acclaimed album Come Away With Me, which was certified a diamond album in 2002, selling over 20 million copies...
, k.d. Lang
K.D. Lang
Kathryn Dawn Lang, OC , known by her stage name k.d. lang, is a Canadian pop and country singer-songwriter and occasional actress...
, Cassandra Wilson
Cassandra Wilson
Cassandra Wilson is an American jazz musician, vocalist, songwriter, and producer from Jackson, Mississippi. Described by critic Gary Giddins as "a singer blessed with an unmistakable timbre and attack [who has] expanded the playing field" by incorporating country, blues and folk music into her...
) and "signals a new approach for the musician as she carries her jazz sensibilities into rootsier territory".
She also offered a two-song preview of the new album: a cover of Beatles' song "Martha, My Dear" and a new original song "The Things I've Seen Today" which she co-wrote with vocalist/violinist Jenny Scheinman
Jenny Scheinman
Jenny Scheinman is an accomplished violinist. Renowned as a jazz violinist, she has credits with artists in many genres. She has collaborated and played with Linda Perry, Norah Jones, Nels Cline, Lou Reed, Ani Difranco, Bruce Cockburn, Aretha Franklin, Lucinda Williams, Bono, and Bill Frisell and...
. The two-track EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
was released on March 29. The album itself features contributions from Marc Ribot
Marc Ribot
Marc Ribot born May 21, 1954) is an American guitarist and composer.His own work has touched on many styles, including no wave, free jazz, and Cuban music. Ribot is also known for collaborating with other musicians, most notably Tom Waits, Elvis Costello, and composer John Zorn.-Biography:Ribot was...
on guitar/banjo, Me'shell Ndegeocello
Me'shell Ndegeocello
Meshell Ndegeocello is an American singer-songwriter, rapper, bassist, and vocalist. Her music incorporates a wide variety of influences, including funk, soul, hip hop, reggae, R&B, rock, and jazz. She has received significant critical acclaim throughout her career, and has had ten career Grammy...
on bass, drummer Charley Drayton
Charley Drayton
Charley Drayton is an American multi-instrumental musician and producer, who has played as a drummer and bass guitarist for many bands and artists and is currently the drummer in Australian rock bands Divinyls and Cold Chisel....
(Neil Young
Neil Young
Neil Percival Young, OC, OM is a Canadian singer-songwriter who is widely regarded as one of the most influential musicians of his generation...
, Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash
John R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
) and guitarist Chris Bruce (Seal
Seal (musician)
Seal Henry Olusegun Olumide Adeola Samuel , known simply as Seal, is a British soul and R&B singer-songwriter, of Nigerian and Brazilian background. Seal has won numerous music awards throughout his career, including three Brit Awards—winning Best British Male in 1992, four Grammy Awards, and an...
, John Legend
John Legend
John Roger Stephens , better known by his stage name John Legend, is an American singer, musician, and actor. He is the recipient of nine Grammy Awards, and in 2007, he received the special Starlight award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame.Prior to the release of his debut album, Stephens' career...
). The album was released on June 6, 2011. High-profile tour dates were to follow the release of the album.
Collaborations
In 2003 she collaborated with Mick Reed singing a duet entitled "A Fool at the Other" which appears on the album "Courtney's Farm" by The Spring Valley Studs. The song also appears on Mick Reed's "Goodnight, Texas" (2011) album. In 2008, Peyroux collaborated with Phil RoyPhil Roy
Phil Roy is an American musician, singer, and songwriter.-Early musical career:Roy was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and began playing the guitar at age nine. At age 17, attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts...
on his third album, The Great Longing, as a duo on the track "Exceptionally Ordinary". Madeleine Peyroux also covered "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning" from the Still Breathing
Still Breathing
Still Breathing is 1997 drama feature film starring Brendan Fraser and Joanna Going. Con artist Rosalyn Willoughby in Hollywood and puppeteer Fletcher McBracken in San Antonio have the same dream, which links them to each other. He travels to L.A. to find her, but at first she resists him...
soundtrack and "Life Is Fine" for a Rainer Ptácek
Rainer Ptacek
Rainer Ptacek was a Tucson, Arizona based guitarist and singer-songwriter. His guitar technique, which incorporated slide, finger-picking, tape loops and electronic manipulation, earned him admiration of some notable musicians such as Robert Plant and Billy Gibbons...
tribute.
Peyroux is represented by American International Artists, a management group whose other artists include James Carter
James Carter (musician)
James Carter is an American jazz musician.Carter was born in Detroit, Michigan and learned to play there before moving to New York City. He has been prominent as a performer and recording artist on the jazz scene since the mid-1990s, playing saxophones, flute, and bass clarinet...
and Sarah Pedinotti
Sarah Pedinotti
Sarah Pedinotti is an American songwriter and musician from Saratoga Springs, NY. She is the lead singer and songwriter of the band Railbird . She has also released three albums under her own name. In 2005 her album, One Mirror, was listed by Billboard Magazine editor Thom Duffy as one of the ten...
.
Image and publicity
Peyroux eschews publicity and keeps a low profile. She has dropped "out of sight" for extended periods of time, as when she spent several years busking after the release of her first record.Peyroux is an American of French descent
French American
French Americans or Franco-Americans are Americans of French or French Canadian descent. About 11.8 million U.S. residents are of this descent, and about 1.6 million speak French at home.An additional 450,000 U.S...
; she occasionally sings in French but the majority of her songs are in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
.
The ballad "Don't Wait Too Long
Don't Wait Too Long
"Don't Wait Too Long" is the only original track from Madeleine Peyroux's second solo album Careless Love and it was written by Peyroux herself, Jesse Harris and Larry Klein...
" was featured in an American national television ad campaign for Dockers
Dockers
Dockers is a brand of khaki garments from Levi Strauss & Co.Levi Strauss & Co., then specialized in denim, introduced the Dockers brand in 1986. Dockers became a leading brand of business casual clothing for men led by Bob Siegel. In 1987, Dockers introduced a women's line...
San Francisco brand apparel and the entire song played over the closing credits of the movie The Answer Man, released in 2008. The song was also played in Last Holiday with Queen Latifah. A clip of her recording of "Blue Alert" was used in an Old Navy
Old Navy
Old Navy is an American clothing brand as well as a chain of stores owned by Gap, Inc., with corporate operations in San Francisco and San Bruno, California. It is one of the first major corporations to house headquarters in the new Mission Bay district of San Francisco.Gap, Inc. was run by...
jeans advertisement in 2007. The song "A Prayer" from the album Dreamland was featured in the closing credits in the HBO television series Deadwood
Deadwood (TV series)
Deadwood is an American Western drama television series created, produced and largely written by David Milch. The series aired on the premium cable network HBO from March 21, 2004, to August 27, 2006, spanning three 12-episode seasons. The show is set in the 1870s in Deadwood, South Dakota, before...
in the episode "E.B. Was Left Out".
Discography
- Spreading Rhythm Around and Best Of, with The Lost Wandering Blues and Jazz BandThe Lost Wandering Blues and Jazz BandThe Lost & Wandering Blues and Jazz Band is a group of street musicians playing a variety of musical styles on washtub bass, trumpet, and guitar. The band consists of Daniel William Fitzgerald, Eugene Semyon Clarke, David Alexander Shore, Madeleine Peyroux, and Frank Schaap.-Band members:Daniel...
- 1996: DreamlandDreamland (Madeleine Peyroux album)Dreamland is the first album by singer, songwriter, and guitarist Madeleine Peyroux; it was released in 1996.-Track listing:-Personnel:*Madeleine Peyroux — guitar, vocals*James Carter — bass clarinet, tenor saxophone...
(Atlantic) - 2004: Got You on My MindGot You on My MindGot You on My Mind is a jazz album by William Galison and Madeleine Peyroux, recorded in 1999, and later compiled into an album by Galison alone in 2003...
, with William GalisonWilliam GalisonWilliam Galison is an American jazz musician, most famous as a harmonica player but also known as a multi-instrumentalist, singer and composer.-Early life and rise to fame:...
(Waking Up) - 2004: Careless LoveCareless Love (album)Careless Love is a 2004 jazz album by American jazz singer Madeleine Peyroux. All the tracks are cover versions, except for "Don't Wait Too Long," which Peyroux co-wrote with Jesse Harris and Larry Klein. It is Peyroux's most critically acclaimed album so far and her song choices were praised...
(Rounder) - 2006: Half the Perfect WorldHalf the Perfect WorldHalf the Perfect World is the fourth studio album by American jazz singer Madeleine Peyroux. It was released on September 12, 2006. It peaked at #33 on the Billboard 200 albums chart and had sold 218,000 copies in the United States by December 2008....
(Rounder) - 2009: Bare Bones (Rounder)
- 2011: Standing on the RooftopStanding on the RooftopStanding on the Rooftop is the sixth studio album by American jazz singer Madeleine Peyroux. It was released on June 14, 2011. Peyroux had previously released an EP to promote the album, which included the cover "Martha My Dear" and the brand new song "The Things I Have Seen...
(Emarcy/Decca)
External links
Information- Madeleine Peyroux — official site.
- Madeleine Peyroux discography at DiscogsDiscogsDiscogs, short for discographies, is a website and database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. The Discogs servers, currently hosted under the domain name discogs.com, are owned by Zink Media, Inc., and are...
. - Madeleine Peyroux biography on All About JazzAll About JazzAll About Jazz is a leading jazz music website for enthusiasts and industry professionals based in Philadelphia in the United States.Founded by Michael Ricci in 1995, the Web-Site is maintained by a volunteer staff of writers, editors, and musicians, and provides coverage of all genres of jazz from...
.
Articles & Media
- Via Paris, with Snaps article at Time Magazine.
- Madeleine Peyroux singing "I'm All Right" on YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
. - Live From Abbey Road — film clip, slideshow and brief bio.
- Madeleine Peyroux - Interview and Biography on Female First.