Amazon.co.uk Review
The writer of the theme tune for
Ally McBeal, Vonda Shepard has become a fully-fledged American celebrity. She's no major-label diva, though--after being unceremoniously dumped by Warner Brothers when her first two albums didn't sell, Shepard was plucked from a tiny stage by David E Kelly, the creator of
Ally McBeal, and within a year had attained stardom as Ally's muse, forever hovering in the background with a musical truism and some scraps of wisdom. Fans will be disappointed that
Heart & Soul doesn't include
McBeal theme tune
Searchin' My Soul but there's much else besides; a strutting duet with
Al Green, on "To Sir With Love", the world-against-the-girl blues of "World Without Love" and the bouncy pop of "Confetti". A collection of reserved, polished white-soul songs that are pleasingly lacking in bombast, pretension, or rough edges; this is perfect listening material for America's most neurotic lawyer.
--Louis Pattison