Susi Hyldgaard - Something Special Just For You (1999)

Very difficult to categorize, Danish singer/songwriter Susi Hyldgaard provides an introspective and sometimes abstract blend of folk, pop, R&B, and jazz on the challenging Something Special Just for You. One gets the impression that Hyldgaard has eclectic taste in music -- listening to this intriguing, if uneven, CD, you tend to assume that she has been listening to everyone from Joni Mitchell, Tori Amos, and Joan Armatrading to Stevie Wonder, Miles Davis, and Billie Holiday. Although Something Special Just for You was recorded in Denmark and employs Scandinavian musicians, all of the lyrics are in English; they show that the vocalist has a strong command of the English language. Hyldgaard sings with slight traces of a Scandinavian accent, but only slight traces -- her English is quite easy to understand. Because she can be abstract, Something Special Just for You isn't easy to absorb on the first listen. However, the more times one listens to this promising though imperfect effort, the more one finds to admire about it.~Something Special Just for You Review by Alex Henderson