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Jamie CullumTwentysomething Verve/UMG A few years back a young 'un called Nigel Kennedy grabbed a violin, instilled some attitude - and no small amount of sex appeal - and suddenly made his instrument of choice more popular and approachable to his generation (forget that it was Vivaldi's bloody Four Seasons, we all make mistakes). Now a 24 year old geezer by the name of Jamie Cullum (good looking, bit of Jack-the-lad about him, been playing since age 16 in pubs/clubs, entertainer on cruise ships, sold 650,000 records in 2003), has done the same thing with the piano. Although touted as being a jazz artist, for mine it's more pop/jazz: sure, there is plenty of piano chops, stand up bass and percussion (hats off to bassist Geoff Gascoyne and drummer Sebastiaan de Krom), but overall this is more in the Diana Krall/Norah Jones mould of jazz, where the beauty is in the whole entertainment package. Compared to the current crop of 40's/50's standard warblers such as Michael Buble, young Jamie is not afraid to step outside the comfort zone. His version of Radiohead's High And Dry rides on salsa-like percussion, his voice suitably straining on the high notes, while the sombre Wurlitzer-led version of Jeff Buckley's Lover, You Should've Come Over is one of the choice cuts. My favourite is Hendrix's Wind Cries Mary, the piano replacing the guitar and creating new dynamics to a familiar song. This eclectic choice of covers sits comfortably alongside the standards: a carefree, laid back Singin' In The Rain and a funky rendition of I Could Have Danced All Night. That said, however musically great his take on I Get A Kick Out Of You might be, the big sniff after the "cocaine" line is just a bit twee. Points deducted. The originals, majority written by brother Ben, a few by Jamie, show that both have their fingers on the pulse as to what sort of "jazz" the twentysomething generation will run with. Winners here are the contemporary These Are The Days and the self-explanatory All At Sea. First albums are either make or break. 'Twentysomething' is an A-class make affair.  |
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