A couple of months ago I asked a mate of mine if he has heard of Carla Bruni. He said that he recalled her “as some sort of a hot model”. Well, Carla was one of the most sought after and also possibly one of the most controversial model around. I shall not go into why she is controversial as it would digress from the essence of this write-up. For a lady who will turn 40 this December, she still has the looks and appeal (debatable).
Carla can sing and she does it well. Her 2nd album No Promises is an impressive follow up to her debut Quelqu'un m'a dit, released 5 years ago. On No Promises Carla demonstrates that she has poetic intellect imbued in her blood. Comprising 11 songs, this album is literate in nature as the songs are adaptations of poems by WB Yeats, Christina Rossetti, Walter de la Mare and Emily Dickinson amongst others.
On No Promises, Carla worked with Louis Bertignac and the result was an intimate sound with smoky tones at the right places. Her folk inclination and Bertignac’s blues influence is potent.
Those Dancing Days Are Gone opens the album with a funky blues number interspersed with the occasional harmonica. And when she goes into her breathy whispery singing mode, it exudes a classy gritty feel.
She later gets dreamy and “waltzy” on Before The World Was Made and also on Autumn. On If You Were Coming In The Fall the pace quickens with some rock elements in it.
At Last The Secret Is Out is an apt closure. Not so much for the lyrics as most of the time I just don’t dig deep into them. To me the title of the song has symbolic significance as we know now and can affirm that her talent lies beyond the catwalk and print-ads. She has evolved well indeed to a singer/songwriter to be reckoned with. There is also a certain emotional conviction in the way she sings her songs. And yes, her pronounced accent was all over with no attempt made to mask them. In fact, I like it like that as it imbues the songs with a certain warm tinge.
This album is musical poetry for repeated listening to soothe the frayed soul. Intoxicating at times. Best listened when the lights are dimmed. Glass of red wine in hand - optional.
Oh, ya...she is also known as Mrs. Sarkozy now.
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