Oh Canada: Emilie Claire Barlow

I confess: sometimes it's the picture that makes me want to post about a girl, and not so much the music. That is the case with Emilie Claire Barlow, a Toronto-born jazz-singer who gets compared to Diana Krall but, as this site points out, 'while Krall's performances have a sultry, dusky, very nocturnal quality, Barlow's singing has favored a youthful, girlish sweetness.' That may be true, I think her rendition of Dream a Little Dream of Me in French has a sultry, dusky and nocturnal quality too. Okay, it's cocktailjazz, and when it comes to jazz I rather put on this guy, but you have to agree that ECB is picture-perfect.

Emilie Claire Barlow - Les Yeux Ouverts

Oh Canada: Feist

Leslie Feist is not from Quebec, but born in (on?) Nova Scotia. She grew up in Saskatchewan and later Alberta. Feist, the name she performs under, is a very versatile singer with a very sultry voice. I think her album Let it Die is a classic, I also loved her Sesame Street appearance. She was part of Broken Social Scene, sang with Peaches, Gonzales and Ben Gibbard but also with Frenchmen Arthur H and Albin de la Simone. I have posted all her French songs before (see?), but for this Oh Canada month I'm doing a repost of two songs. Including the gorgeous duet with Arthur H, but not this one.

Feist - La même histoire (link fixed)
Arthur H & Feist - La chanson de Satie (video)

Oh Canada: Isabelle Boulay

Time to roll out the big guns in this Oh Canada-month. I have posted about Isabelle Boulay a few times, and always I expressed my mixed feelings. Not about her looks (she's a babe), but about her repertoire. They call her 'Chanson Diva': her songs have a bland tendency, too much old chanson, nice 'n easy. And there's always the danger of belting out like she-devil Celine. (No worries, we'll keep this Canada-tribute Dion-free). That said, she does have several high quality songs, like the ones posted here. Ne me dis... was written by Benjamin Biolay, and let's face it: the girl can sing. I read on her Wiki that she made quite an impression on a talent hunt by singing Brel's Amsterdam. She redid that a-capella on her 'live'-album, which is nice.

Isabelle Boulay - Ne Me Dis Pas Qu'il Faut Sourire
Isabelle Boulay - Amsterdam

Vanessa & Albin

Oh Canada: Lenni Jabour

Guestpost! Anna Maria from Sweden on Lenni Jabour & the Third Floor:

Lenni Jabour and her band Third Floor record cabaret-tinged chansons and in a charming fashion. Their latest album Les dangereuses was out in 2005 and is still a nice listen. Her voice has a sweet and seductive tinge to it and she sings mostly in French. She plays the piano which is nice too. She started playing live when she was eighteen and has continued with that ever since. They are worth a look and will probably release a new album soon.

Lenni Jabour - La fille avec les cheveux longues
Lenni Jabour - Les fleurs mécontentes
Lenni Jabour - Evil ways (Santana cover)

Oh Canada: Catherine Major

Second time Catherine Major is featured in this Oh Canada month, and rightly so because her second album Rose Sang is one of the best to come out of Quebec last year. The highly talented singer and pianoplayer made a very versatile album that was arranged beautiful as well. She's very tender and very fragile in one of the highlights of the cd, Abîme-moi, that sounds like a lost Jacques Brel classic. Single Dans l'au-dela (video) is a sunny whistle-while-you-work tune. But there's more, way more.

Catherine Major - Abime-moi
Catherine Major - Dans l'au-dela

Oh Canada: Michele O

Tip from a visitor of this blog: Michele O, from Montreal. Her folky style is reminiscent of Loane and Poney Express, she sings a little like Vanessa Paradis. No album so far, but her Myspace talks about an EP, to be released in March. I like that hoarse drawl in her voice, look forward to hear more. An artist to watch in 2009, and speaking of which, I'm also curious about the full albums of (non-Canadian artists like) Claire Denamur and Florian Mona. Plus, I hope Roxane and Cecile will finally come out with a cd.

Michele O - Assise dans ma tête