A great song is a great song no matter what. If a
song is truly great, it can transcend genres, artists, and interpretations and
still deliver on its musical hook and impact with an emotional intensity. With
her latest record, Rock Me Sweet,
singer, model, and actress Barbara Lusch puts this theory to the test in a big
way, taking on some of the biggest songs from the 80s and recreates them in a
torch song setting, infusing each track with her own emotion and story. It’s a daunting
task but Lusch delivers something rather interesting here for open minded
listeners.
Inspired by an idea from friend and popular
executive producer Tom Nunan, who suggested reinterpreting classic 80s
male-fronted ballads in a jazz-flavored setting, Lusch took the idea and ran
with it, drawing from eleven nostalgic classics from artists like Bon Jovi,
Bruce Springsteen, and U2, among others. The addition of Earl Sweet as arranger
and orchestra leader only helped to strengthen the deal and give the recording
even more polish.
Drawing from her acting experience, Lusch chose to
approach these songs in a unique manner, seeking to find the unique story within
each for her interpretations.
"I worked on these songs as if I were preparing
a monologue,” she shares. “My acting experience has taught me story-telling
techniques, and now it is so rewarding to perform this music, knowing that the
lyrics have a deep significance for me and hoping this will be communicated to
my audience as well."
The overall result is an album that brings something
new to listeners as well as a renewed respect for Lusch of the artists whose
work she draws from.
"Once we brought the tempos down, the emotions
and stories contained in the lyrics emerged so clearly. I began to love these
songs more and more, and to gain new admiration for the artists who conceived
them,” she says.
Those emotions range from lovelorn and emotionally
tortured to downright sultry and seductive from one track to another. Cheap
Trick’s “I Want You To Want Me” is envisioned as a siren song, Lusch’s vocals
warm and inviting, flirtatious in their delivery while “Dancing In the Dark” is
treated to a slow, string-laden arrangement that tempers the lyric, putting it
starkly at the front and echoing with a touch of sadness.
Bits of horn and subtle percussion color Lusch’s
take on “Living on a Prayer,” the track infused almost with a touch of samba
while “Sweet Child of Mine” is a light and airy affair, gentle strings and
guitar pressing it forward, a far cry from the Guns ‘N’ Roses original. “Hungry
Like the Wolf” is another sultry delivery, Lusch teasing listeners with the
lyric and the easy going composition as “Hot Blooded” amps it up even more,
rich swells of horns providing a sonic wink and a nod throughout.
“Owner of a Lonely Heart” has a blues tone to it,
the horns continuing to provide added emotion alongside some smooth percussion and
keys, Lusch crooning effortlessly through the track, evoking thoughts of a
smoky singer in a classic pulp fiction noir. But the artist’s finest effort
might be her rendition of the U2 classic, “Where the Streets Have No Name.”
Engaging listeners with a tone that evokes sadness at the outset, the track
builds, resonant strings providing a sense of movement before moving from
sorrow to joy, Bono’s lyric as powerful here as ever.
Barbara Lusch’s Rock
Me Sweet is not an album that will be for everyone but, for an adventurous
listener, there’s a lot to be heard here. Taking on some daunting classics, the
artist boldly dives into these eleven songs and infuses them with healthy doses
of herself while maintaining the integrity of what are still great songs.
