Album Review: Rumer - Boys Don’t Cry

It's hard to shake that knee-jerk reaction to an album of covers – that is, surmising that it's a cop-out, especially when the artist in question doesn't have a back catalogue spanning beyond one album. Unlike Birdy, whose recent debut of covers was received to critical acclaim, Rumer's venture is likely to spawn diverging opinions. The British artist's 2010 debut album Seasons Of My Soul sold more than one million copies worldwide, earning her Brit Awards and a highly publicised fan in Elton John. Fast forward a couple of years and we have Boys Don't Cry, a collection of songs she handpicked from the early '70s, all originally performed by men.

Each track is coated in a tender and airy musical ambience, a far cry from the mellow-yet-edgy jazz flavours that soaked Seasons Of My Soul. Rumer smooths out the Paul Williams track Travellin' Boy with her Dido-like vocals and ethereal back-up harmonies, before swapping Todd Rundgren's piano-driven Be Nice To Me for a lighter acoustic melody. Her take on Ronnie Lane's Just For A Moment is Rumer at her best, with her emotive vocal delivery leaving you believing every word as if it were her own. It's this feature that keeps the album afloat amidst a few dated arrangements, especially during her cover of Townes Van Zandt's Flyin' Shoes, a version that drowns out the rustic hardship of the song with a sweet melody. Richie Havens' It Could Be The First Day follows suit with an outmoded arrangement more fitting for a hotel lobby than a modern LP.

The record ends on a high with John Sebastian's Welcome Back in all its chiming, '70s-beat glory. Despite some lacklustre backdrops, Rumer's soulful-yet-dulcet voice provides a fresh vehicle for these tales. Sadly, all that's missing is the spark from her debut.