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Music review: Katharine McPhee – ‘I Fall in Love Too Easily’

By Clint Rhodes for The 2 min read
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Music review: Katharine McPhee – ‘I Fall in Love Too Easily’
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Rhodes

Love is indeed in the air and Katharine McPhee is falling head over heels in love with a set of romantic jazz standards on her fifth studio release.

McPhee smoothly transitions from the pop flavorings offered on 2015ĢƵ “Hysteria,” to the sophisticated sounds drawn from the Great American Songbook.

McPheeĢƵ voice is perfectly suited to perform the 10 sentimental tracks that are sure to melt hearts and evoke memories of happier, simpler times.

A double threat as both a singer and actor, McPhee got her big break as the runner-up during the fifth season of “American Idol.” McPhee would wow the judges and audience by performing classic covers such as “Since I Fell for You,” “Come Rain or Come Shine” and “Someone to Watch Over Me.”

Soon after, McPhee would release her self-titled debut album. The release sold 116,000 copies its first week and McPhee was well on her way to becoming a star.

The mood is seductively set on the opener “All the Way” with McPhee delivering a breathy cover version as she announces, “When somebody loves you/ItĢƵ no good unless he loves you all the way.”

Talented producer Don Was once again pulls all the right strings by allowing McPheeĢƵ voice to tenderly slow dance with the lush instrumental arrangements, especially heard on Cole PorterĢƵ “Night and Day” and Nina SimoneĢƵ “Everything Must Change.”

On “It Never Entered My Mind,” McPhee matches the warm tone previously performed so divinely by Linda Ronstadt when she moved from her traditional pop style and collaborated with Nelson Riddle in 1984 on “Lush Life.”

Intimate versions of “I’ll Be Seeing You,” “Sooner or Later (I Always Get My Man)” and closing track “Blame It on My Youth” display McPheeĢƵ vocal elegance and vulnerability.

“I Fall in Love Too Easily” beautifully demonstrates how the 33-year-old McPhee has grown during her career and clearly proves she has shed that runner-up label.

Since it is also the holiday season, be sure to check out McPheeĢƵ 2010 Christmas album “Christmas Is the Time to Say I love You.” “ItĢƵ Not Christmas Without You” is gorgeously done and is one of my favorite holiday tracks.

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