Friday, January 25, 2013

Emmy Rossum - Sentimental Journey


When I was first asked about listening and sharing Emmy Rossum's soon to be released album, Sentimental Journey, I had never heard of her and had no idea what to expect. When I received the album, I started to listen to it, before doing any research. As is the case with any music, I set out to listening to it in my car. I like this because I am driving and don't have the ability to look ahead on a track listing or anticipate what is left on the album.

As I listened, I started to recognize some of the music that she was singing - turns out that Sentimental Journeys is a collection of classic covers. She has the perfect voice to present these classics to the listener. As I listened to her, I could imagine her singing along with the Rat Pack or being a lounge singer, like you see in those older movies.

As I listened, I noticed that there were a number of songs about seasons, including one that seemed to be a Christmas song. I later learned that her organizing principle when compiling the album was a musical calendar that would take listeners on an emotional journey through the 12 months of the year. This is a rather unique approach, but I think I kind of like it - even though it was odd to listen to a Christmas like song in January.


Sentimental Journey, releasing on January 29th, is a collection of classic covers that takes us through the American Songbook.

On Sentimental Journey, the multi-talented actress and singer brings her stellar voice to songs popularized by some of the most beloved artists of the last century. Emmy's 12-song 'passion project' is an emotional musical journey, with each song representing a month in the year.

"Each song needed to either lyrically or emotionally reflect the corresponding month," Emmy explained. "Some songs were obvious fits, like Summer Wind for June, and Pretty Paper for December. Others songs were less literal fits. I chose Nobody Knows You (When You're Down and Out) for September because, to me, the plaintive melody and lyric emotionally reflect the cold weather creeping in and the sense of melancholy we can get in the fall months."

Rossum is also an acclaimed actress who currently stars in the Showtime series Shameless with William H. Macy. She also stars alongside Emma Thompson and Viola Davis in the upcoming feature film Beautiful Creatures, which hits theaters on February 13th.


Sentimental Journey Track Listing:

“Sentimental Journey” (Les Brown, Ben Homer, Arthur Green)
“The Object Of My Affection” (Pinky Tomlin)
“I’m Looking Over A Four Leaf Clover “(Mort Dixon, Harry M. Woods)
“These Foolish Things (Remind Me Of You)” (Eric Maschwitz, Jack Strachey)
“(I’ll Be With You) In Apple Blossom Time” (Albert Von Tilzer, Neville Fleeson)
“Summer Wind” (Heinz Meier, Johnny Mercer)
“Many Tears Ago” (Winfield Scott)
“All I Do Is Dream Of You” (Nacio Herb Brown, Arthur Freed)
“Nobody Knows You When You’re Down And Out” (Jimmy Cox)
“Autumn Leaves” (Joseph Kosma, Jacques PrĂ©vert)
“Things” (Bobby Darin)
“Pretty Paper” (Willie Nelson)

Check out the video for These Foolish Things:

Her album is currently available through iTunes or Amazon for pre-order. (It was cheaper on Amazon by $2, when I checked).

You can catch Emmy performing a track from her new album today (January 25th) on Access Hollywood Live. She will also be appearing as a guest on several other shows in the next week or so - on Conan on January 28th, Chelsea Lately on January 29th, and The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson on February 6th.

You can follow Emmy on Twitter and learn more about her on her website. When I was exploring her website, I saw that she received Golden Globe nomination for her role as Christine in the movie Phantom of the Opera. I watched that movie a few years back, but after listening to her album, I want to go back and check out the movie again.

No compensation was received for this post. I participated in this campaign for One2One Network and received a free copy of the CD to facilitate my review. By posting, I am eligible for incentives. All opinions stated are my own.