I’m not exactly sure what the allure is for hollywood actors to try to crossover into the music biz but the streets of Tinseltown are lined with garbage bins full of failed attempts by the likes of Bruce Willis, Don Johnson, Steven Seagal, Leonard Nimoy and Eddie Murphy. but even with the grim track record of her predecessors, actress Zooey Deschanel is bound and determined to make her own mark with her new album titled Volume One. wisely, Deschanel brought in some help to record her songs by way of producer/musician M. Ward. With this project being such a collaborative effort, Deschanel and Ward decided to forego the marketability of her own name stamped on the album cover and went with naming the duo as She & Him. interestingly, the spotlight still weighs heavily on Deschanel with her vocals (as well as her compositions) being the central focus on the album. Ward does come forward singing a duet with Deschanel on “You Really Got a Hold On Me” but otherwise he remains in the background. the resulting album recalls the retro-60’s from the rough and loose sounding band to the quirky girl-group sound on songs like “Sweet Darlin’” and “I Was Made for You”. overall Deschanel sounds a bit too cute for my tastes and the material (all penned by Deschanel except for the Smokey Robinson cover, a Beatles cover and the traditional “Swing Low Sweet Chariot”), a tad too amateurish and superficial. now, don’t get me wrong, I don’t hate the record. I like Zooey as an actress and her foray into singing/songwriting got me intrigued but as the saying goes - “don’t quit your day job”. the material isn’t vocally demanding but it’s obvious that Deschanel has a limited vocal range. on songs that require the higher reaches of her range like “Sentimental Heart” and “Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?”, there are some unpleasant moments for sensitive ears. when she sticks to her lower register as in the songs “Change is Hard” and “I Thought I Saw Your Face Today”, things get more listenable. so for all you Zooey Deschanel fans out there, Volume One is a must. for the rest of you that are simply intrigued by the collaboration between Deschanel and M. Ward, beware - your mileage may vary (YMMV).
TrackList: 1 Sentimental Heart (Deschanel) 2:36
2 Why Do You Let Me Stay Here? (Deschanel) 2:30
3 This Is Not a Test (Deschanel) 3:30
4 Change Is Hard (Deschanel) 3:03
5 I Thought I Saw Your Face Today (Deschanel) 2:50
6 Take It Back (Deschanel) 2:37
7 I Was Made for You (Deschanel) 2:30
8 You Really Got a Hold on Me (Robinson) 3:59
9 Black Hole (Deschanel) 2:12
10 Got Me Deschanel 2:45
11 I Should Have Known Better (Lennon, McCartney) 3:38
12 Sweet Darlin’ (Deschanel, Schwartzman) 2:40
13 Swing Low, Sweet Chariot (Traditional) 1:36
