Eavesdropping on the long-ago: That, in a sense, describes the full-length debut of Hannah Brine, who’s perhaps best known in the UK as a choir director whose credits include creating and overseeing vocal ensembles for TV affairs. Her songs conjure the singer-songwriters of the early 1970s, when pop, jazz and cogent lyrics about life and love coalesced in songs by Carole King, Carly Simon and Roberta Flack, among others. About the only thing missing is the rhythmic swishing sound of bell-bottom jeans.
The 10-track set opens with the jazzy “One Precious Life,” inspired by the untimely death of a friend: “We shouldn’t waste a single moment on regret/We’re gonna make some mistakes/and our hearts are gonna break/but keep on living and loving, anyway.” Most everyone stumbles and tumbles on occasion, after all, but given the limited time we’re allotted on Earth, it’s best to pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and—after checking for broken bones, of course—continue on; looking back, lingering over what could or should have been is a fool’s errand. (That said, it’s easier said than done!)
The stirring “You Make Me Believe in Love” is meant for lazy nights with the one you love; the heart levitates while listening. “Goodbye London” is a bittersweet yet lilting ode that finds Brine bidding adieu to the city that failed to embrace her—she wanted it as a lover, while it saw her as a friend. The jazzy “Let Love Find You,” meanwhile, is a delightful throwback that brings to mind Peggy Lee and similar chanteuses, including Melody Gardot.
The title track, for its part, is a work of art. The lyrics delve into childhood expectations, adult realities, love, and more, while Brine’s touching vocal captures the emotional gradients of each syllable. The same can be said of “Little Bird,” which turns our feathered friends into a metaphor about infertility. The arrangements are never as sparse as they seem. Sometimes they incorporate strings, sometimes they don’t; one can easily imagine Brine either on stage, accompanied only by a piano or guitar, performing them, or fronting a big band.
“Cobwebs & Lace,” released as single a few weeks back, explores how the tchotchkes we treasure mean much less than the memories they represent. “This Little Ship” does to love what “Goodbye London” did for city life, i.e., rejecting an ex who hopes to reunite. “Boxes,” another gem, finds Brine unsealing memories of a past relationship; in another era, aka the mid-’70s Olivia Newton-John would’ve topped the pop charts with it. The jazzy “Heat of the Moment,” which closes the album, finds Brine navigating the maze of mixed emotions many experience in the aftermath of a breakup.
Like most singer-songwriter albums, Blue Sky Now is a low-key affair that addresses matters life and love in a poetic manner; the hues of Brine’s heart color the proceedings. She cowrote the songs with an array of collaborators, and is accompanied by a top-notch ensemble that includes Jamie McCredie, who produced, on guitar, Hamish Balfour and Jamie Safir on piano, Ian King on bass, Chris Draper on drums, and Freddie Gavita on trumpet. The string section consists of Debs White and Dave Larkin on violin, Reiad Chibah on viola, and Julia Graham on cello.
The album will be available to stream as of Friday the 27th and can be purchased from Brine’s web store.
The Old Grey Cat 