The future looked bright for Rebecca Ferguson when she finished as the runner-up on the 2010 series of The X Factor. Losing out to Matt Cardle appeared to be a good thing as she was given the time to write and record a debut album of original material. Released in December 2011 Heaven sold over 1.5 million copies and saw Ferguson hailed as the next big UK soul star.
The buzz built again for the release of her second album Freedom, but commercially it didnāt perform on par with her first album. The albumās campaign was cut short when Ferguson became pregnant, which may have had a knock on effect for the albumās sales. Now Ferguson is back with her third album Lady Sings the Blues, a homage to Billie Holidayās album of the same name.
One thing to point out is that this isnāt a direct re-recording of Holidayās album of the same name. The songs are all songs that have been sung by Holiday at some point so the album is more a celebration of the legendary singer. The album opens with Get Happy immediately reintroducing to Fergusonās soulful and powerful voice.
The album showcases Fergusonās vocals in a way that her previous releases havenāt. We always knew she had soul but she sounds fantastic singing these songs. The bluesy That Ole Devil Called Love is an early highlight on the record with Ferguson effusing sass and sex appeal, whilst Summertime is darkly hypnotic with atmospheric vocals.
Elsewhere on the album Ferguson creates an elegant jazz feel on Donāt Explain, sounds dreamy on Iāll Never Smile Again, and lets go on the funky Fine and Mellow. The stand out moment on the record is God Bless The Child where Ferguson transports you to a smoky jazz club with her impressive vocal prowess.
On paper itās clear why having Ferguson cover the songs of Holiday is a good idea but we canāt help feeling itās an odd decision at this stage in her career, particularly when Ferguson fought so hard to record original material at the start of her career.
Maybe itās something to do with the disappointing commercial performance of Freedom but it feels too early for her to be turning to covers. Lady Sings the Blues is a perfectly pleasant album and thereās no denying that Ferguson sounds fantastic. We would have preferred her to pay homage to the era with her own material though and thatās something she could have turned her hand to easily.