Blue Gardenia

The song I sang in the recent scene I shot in the French film 'Goodbye Morocco' is 'Blue Gardenia'. You may be familiar with the lovely Dinah Washington and Nat king Cole versions. I felt very nervous about this - as I sang the song live in the nightclub scene & also it isn't the kind of song I am used to singing. However, I guess it's good to try new things ! And I was  thrilled to be on set with my friend actress Lubna Azabal who plays the film's main character - and to watch her working. I'll let you know when the film is released - but in the meantime please enjoy the awesome Nat king Cole ! love tt

H.G. Wells, Tracie Bennett & End of the Rainbow

I've begun reading H.G.Wells so I was curious to see a production of 'The Invisible Man' at the Menier Chocolate factory [link]. It was enjoyable, and I loved the re-creation of an evening of good old-fashioned Victorian entertainment but the pace could have been faster. Also saw 'End of the Rainbow' at another charming small theatre the Trafalgar Studios [link]. Tracie Bennett gives a truly thrilling performance as Judy Garland during the the final months of her life shared with her last husband Micky Deans. I marvel at the energy of such a performance and the audience gave Tracie Bennett and the rest of the cast a deserved standing ovation. This production also gives me a good excuse to post a video of Judy Garland and Peggy Lee singing together. I don't want to be overly nostalgic but I think it's rare to find singers today who can sing so effortlessly. I hope you enjoy Love tt

I am not a Robot

Just heard this song by Marina and the Diamonds ' I am not a Robot '. It's so fresh and what an interesting voice! love tt

Still writing...

Still working on new material. I’m very happy writing with Mark, he has brought this truly joyous sense of groove to the songs and I feel he is bringing out a different side of me. There are even a couple of songs that if I heard them by someone else, I would be quite envious. (Oops! Am I allowed to say that? I guess it’s ok to throw the occasional flower at yourself !) Who knows what will happen ? When you actually end up recording an album, you can be so easily distracted by non-musical choices and have a sudden lack of faith. My aim is just to keep this freshness & enthusiasm through the whole process. Lots of love tt

Ramon !

Ramon my brother came by this week to sing on one of the new songs. He has a completely different voice to me, it is really powerful (perhaps, this is because he is an actor). So basically I get him to sing the really hard bits on the song which I can't sing ;) I sing in French on this song, which is funny and I hope you will like it as much as I liked doing it. Perhaps, I've been listening to too much Serge Gainsbourg and watching too many Isabelle Huppert movies ! Love tt

Mark Creswell

I’m currently finishing off the new material with Mark Creswell. I’ve known Mark since I was 18 so it was about time that we actually wrote together ! We share so many influences: soul, country, reggae but what I appreciate most about him is his openness to all kinds of music. For example last night we had a retro moment and listened to a few tracks from Madonna’s album ‘Music’. Both of us awestruck by Mirwais the producer's ability to organize sound (I’m afraid I can’t think of a better way to describe what he does). But Mark will also happily sit through a DVD of Daniel Barenboim giving a Beethoven Master class. What more can you ask from a musical collaborator ! Love, tt

Photo (c) Sylvie Bardet

Finished a song last week...

... that had been rather troublesome. It has such a lovely beginning that I didn't quite know how to reach the end. When it was finally finished I said to Mark my co-writer "Mmmm. This is a song that is really about adult emotions ". I always feel so absurdly satisfied when I've done one of them!