Bewitched

Laufey, composer, singer, producer, and multi-instrumentalist, continues her story by writing and recording Bewitched, her second album. The Goddess Edition features four brand-new original songs including lead single "Goddess". Inspired by jazz greats and classical masters while possessing a point of view that could only be conveyed by a 21st-century twentysomething, Bewitched represents an expansion of Laufey’s sonic palette. Tracks like the breezy bossa nova cut “From The Start” and the smoldering string-assisted ballad “Promise” have classic songcraft and intricate arrangements that make them feel instantly timeless. Laufey’s conversational lyrics give her music a relatability to the next generation of jazz, pop, and classical aficionados.

On Andy Summers and Robert Fripp's second album, Bewitched, the duo offered a new batch of their instrumental songs, which turned out to be much more rock-oriented than their texturized 1982 debut, I Advance Masked. The album was originally going to be a more musically varied affair - at the time, Summers talked about recording calypso and Tex-Mex/Ry Cooder-like tunes with Fripp, but they never saw the light of day. Like its predecessor, it contains plenty of great guitar work, with songwriting being stressed over instrumental virtuosity. For example, Summers and Fripp know how to subtly insert challenging sections into their songs (such as the 7/4 time signature in "Maquillage"), without making them seem like an obvious attempt to impress fellow musicians…

Laura Fygi's Bewitched is a straight-ahead jazz date in which the attractive singer is joined by a rhythm section, a string section, and some guests. She performs fresh and warm versions of a dozen songs, the majority of which are ballads. The performances are concise (only one tune exceeds four and a half minutes) and lightly swinging, although the string section sometimes seems unnecessary. Toots Thielemans' harmonica helps out on "Good Morning Heartache" and "Girl Talk," Clark Terry uplifts "It's Crazy" and "The End of a Love Affair" with his flugelhorn, and tenor great Johnny Griffin is featured on "I Only Have Eyes for You," "I Love You for Sentimental Reasons," and "I Wish You Love." Throughout, Fygi holds her own and sounds quite relaxed and musical, making these standards her own.

Although Dutch singer Laura Fygi initially garnered notice as a member of the disco group Centerfold, after setting out in 1992 as a solo performer she pursued a more jazz-inspired path with her debut effort Introducing Laura Fygi. On subsequent efforts including Bewitched and the following year's The Lady Wants to Know, she collaborated with figures including Johnny Griffin, Toots Thielemans and Clark Terry, and in 1997 Fygi worked with one of her idols, the great composer Michel Legrand, on Watch What Happens.