Funny Face, by Angela Vella Zarb

Funny Face

by Angela Vella Zarb

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Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album
Liner notes by Angela Vella Zarb, and beautiful photography by Elisa Von Brockdorff. Sleeve design by Oliver Degabriele.

Includes unlimited streaming of Funny Face via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

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1.	Almost Like Being In Love 03:01	info	buy track
2.	I Thought About You 02:54	info	buy track
3.	Invitation 04:59	info	buy track
4.	I'll Take Romance 02:05	info	buy track
5.	A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes 03:47	info	buy track
6.	Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered 07:33	info	buy track
7.	Funny Face 01:59	info	buy track
8.	Isn't This A Lovely Day 05:16	info	buy track
9.	Lush Life 04:06	info	buy track
10.	They All Laughed 04:10	info	buy track
11.	You're Driving Me Crazy 02:29	info	buy track
12.	Stay Awake 03:54	info	buy track

about

The idea for this album took root (as most ideas do) over a glass of wine in Valletta. With a much needed prod in the back from Oliver, I realised that I had very little to show for my initial foray into - and eventual love affair, with jazz. So, here we are! Being very much a 'live audience' performer, I wanted the album to reflect that spontaneity, without overthinking it. I've chosen to work in an intimate trio format, with Karl Galea my right-hand-man on guitar, and the ever-generous Oliver Degabriele on the double bass. My dear friend Kris Spiteri also features on one track, playing a beautiful grand piano. Over in Paris, Paul Bouclier contributed on cuica (!) for a samba tune, which really made my day.

Singing has always been about story-telling, for me. My first loves were the cinema and musical theatre; indeed many jazz standards originate from old movies and stage shows, so I've chosen a few (sometimes obscure) personal favourites. Others, I plucked out of movies myself, adapting them to a jazz format with the idea of creating 'new' standards. A Dream Is A Wish... I took from Disney's 1950 feature, Cinderella. It surprised me by working wonderfully as a samba. Stay Awake comes from Mary Poppins (1964), a movie I watched endlessly as a child. And the title track, Funny Face, is from the gorgeous Audrey Hepburn/Fred Astaire movie of the same name; a tune which I sing in the car, in the kitchen, in the shower - just all day long.

To make this record possible I turned to crowdfunding, so a very special thanks goes to my top contributors, especially: the ravishing Raewyn McGrigor, my partner Stefano Borg Olivier, Pauline Longo, Joseph Cannataci, my parents Jon Vella Zarb and Simone Chircop, old band-mate Daryl Ebejer, Simon Sansone, Alison Galea and (sneakily) Oliver Degabriele, my favourite brikkun Mario Vella, Noellie Brockdorff, Bert J. Zarb, and the lovely Uschi Borg Olivier. Huge thanks of course to everyone else who contributed. Your valuable support made my project come to life.

credits

released November 10, 2022

Features:
Angela Vella Zarb (voice)
Karl Galea (guitar)
Oliver Degabriele (double bass)
Kris Spiteri (piano - track 6)
Paul Bouclier (cuica - track 5)

Recording by Luke Grech at Cornerstone Studios.
Mastering by Kenny D'Ugo.
Videos by Matthew Muscat Drago.

Associated promo photography shot by Elisa Von Brockdorff (with thanks to Barbajean for providing the venue).

license

about

Angela Vella Zarb Malta

Angela Vella Zarb is a Maltese jazz singer. She currently sings as a soloist on the jazz circuit, with gypsy-jazz band Swing Nuages, and brazilian-contemporary ensemble Blue Tangerine. She has recorded vocals for jazz-rock bands The Ranch (2015) and The Plakard Project (2018), and released an album with Blue Tangerine in 2019. In 2020 Angela performed at the ICI in Vienna with her jazz trio. ... more