First Impressions: Melody Gardot’s “From Paris With Love”

On Friday, jazz chanteuse Melody Gardot released the single “From Paris With Love,” a dreamy and breezy depiction of life in the Pandemic Age. “Maybe one day I will see you/Maybe one day I will see you soon…”

On her website, she says, “In times of great difficulty, art will always break through. Created in isolation, made with love, this project is a reflection of the strength of the human spirit.” For those unfamiliar with the undertaking, the song – which was written by Melody and Pierre Aderne – features a global orchestra of amateur and professional musicians, who contributed their parts after a video request from Melody on her Facebook page in early May. (On her Instagram page, she spotlights many of these talented folks.)

I’ll simply say that “From Paris With Love” is Melody at her best. Her warm vocal arcs towards the clouds like a velvety rainbow made of sound, just about, and the orchestral bed beneath her is simultaneously soft yet firm. It makes me yearn to see her in concert again.