Kate Schutt: No Love Lost

The debut studio recording of American singer-songwriter/guitarist Kate Schutt combines old school gypsy jazz aesthetics and Schutt's wise, original words, persuasive melodies and economic arrangements. Schutt, who relocated to Guelph, Ontario and produced this fine recording, offers ten well-articulated and melodic song-stories, which cover different but never simple aspects of love. One bold cover that stands out is Sheila E's "Glamorous Life."

Schutt's main collaborators are Newfoundlanders, guitarist Duane Andrews bringing with him a Django gypsy jazz feel accompanied and often complimented by trumpeter Patrick Boyle. Schutt's sweet, warm voice and clear phrasing command attention for the universal resonance of her lyrics, often sounding like old-school standards written for the Broadway stage, like the opening track "How Much in Love." However, the following track, "Wrecking Ball," proves Schutt's point: the song flows between Andrews' gentle gypsy-like riffs, Boyle's trumpet hooks, and Paul Raddick's harmonica work alongside Schutt's skeletal guitar and suggestive vocals. All the players trade solos in such an organic manner that the chorus can be hummed mid-song.

Schutt's song about unrequited love, "Peter Please," and her treaty of true love, "I'm Yours," unite her with Bostonian blues vocalist Toni Lynn Washington, who contributes inspired backing vocals for the former, upbeat blues song and calm and sober reflection of a relationship on the latter. "Two Halves" sounds like another standard about a careless love affair. Schutt's anatomy of new love, "The Young," demonstrates her abilities as a guitarist on a hybrid 8-string guitar/bass—interacting beautifully with Boyle and Andrews—and her storytelling skills. "Glamorous Life" is a sensual rendition of vocalist/percussionist Sheila E's song about a rushed and vain love affair, with Schutt injecting a bebop sensibility into this pop classic.

Kate Schutt's masterful No Love Lost is meticulously composed and beautifully performed.