Isabella Lundgren is from Karstad, Sweden but studied music in New York City. At the age of twenty three she moved back to her native country and released "It Had To Be You," her first album. It is wonderful. At a young age, you can tell that she knows and understands the intricacies of songs from The Great American Songbook. I love her "Don't Ever Leave Me," as she infuses it with much longing. Her voice reminds me of a less harsh version of Stacey Kent, and it is wondrous. I couldn't help but feel her soul as she sings, like in "You Belong To Me," she gave me yearning, vulnerability, passion. Though in bluesy numbers like "Blues In The Night," you can sense her greenness, she always soars in the ballads. (I had "if I Should Lose You" in repeat for an hour and did not tire of it) She is one of those singers who can convey angst in her singing, reminiscent of Billie Holiday and Edith Piaf, and I am always a sucker for those. She can even make an ubiquitous song like "La Vie En Rose" sound like you are hearing it for the first time. I know at times I can be jaded when it comes to jazz vocals, but I am smitten by Isabella.
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