Saint Germain Cafe VIII (2CD)

For whatever reason, that verse from the first song on this album got stuck in my head. So here I am a good year later reviewing this one - mainly because I was reminded of it by volume 9 which came out about a month ago. This series was done on the Wagram label - same label that gives you Buddha Bar & Hotel Costes & the now defunct "Paris Lounge" series. It's NOT a Ludovic Navarre release. It's consistent - a cd series that's pushing the envelope a bit with nu-jazz and electronic touches and fusion. So many good artists have graced this franchise that IMO deserves to be mentoined amongst the greatest in nu-jazz/fusion/electronic series out there. But I've noticed a trend in the past three editions of this that I'll get into at the end.

As I stated before - "Cellophane" was stuck in my head. Don't know why or how. It just was. It almost turned me off from the album, but I grew to like it. Cheesy effects, simple lyrics. It just works somehow & that's a great compiler to know to put that in there. Big Bang follow up with "Yo Yo Jazz", a pretty good little number with subtle effects and great live instrumentation. It's a track tat glides and has a neat percussion solo. Diesler's "A Little Something" is a song loaded with soul and a nead little touch. It's a track that defines the series and paints a picture of the perfect early fall evening in Paris. Consistent piano, neat beat, and that touch of sax in there to give it even more class. Down disc one you've got some more good tracks from Koop who've really refined their sound over the past 8 years. Nothing says 'lounge' like a good xylophone. Other top tracks were "Expecting Repercussions", Povo's classy "Million Ways", and the highlight would be a very romantic rendition of "Sweet is the Air" featuring none other than Alice Russell on vocals. A magical song.

All of this - and I couldn't get to the second disk in the review, let alone other highlights in disc one (that familiar voice from The Dining Rooms, etc.)! A few highlights on disc two would be "Forgotten Places" for a pure nostalgic SGDPC vibe - it's a spitting image of their earlier tracks. Also check "Drifting" by longstanding SGDPC favorit Metropolitan Jazz Affair - their sound is pretty unmistakable to me. The thing is, disc 1 was definitely the stand-out. But I think that disc two has more of the flavour of the previous, older volumes (1-4) and was a bit more risky and original. There were some good hits there but also some misses.

So this album as a whole stacks up well in the series. One of the better ones. But I have noticed a trend, and that trend being that they've gone the route with slightly less electronica and a little more real jazz/funk/soul. This is hinted in volume 8 but accentuated in the newest edition (volume 9). It's not a bad thing, mind you. So I recommend this one. It's very good. And if you like this one, check out the next volume and some of the later volumes of the Break & Bossa series along with Schema's "Freedom Jazz Dance" albums.

I found this cd particularly different form the other ones, because it's got some tunes that aren't foun in the previous seven volumes. This is a great cd to have a cocktail with your friends on a friday night.