Album Review and Interview: Mandy Cook’s jazz-folk jewel, “See”

Nashville is known as several things: The Baptist Vatican, the country music hub of the world, the global Christian music headquarters, and where all good singer-songwriters hope go when they die. It’s not normally thought of as a jazz mecca—certainly not compared to New York City, Chicago, Boston, San Francisco, Los Angeles, New Orleans, etc. However, it is home to major players like Beegee Adair, Rahsaan Barber, Dana Robbins, Rod McGaha, Josh Hunt, Bela Fleck, and—of course—Victor Wooten and the entire Wooten clan. And from the older Nashville Jazz Workshop to the Nashville Jazz Composers’ Collective, and from the Nashville Sunday Jazz Band to the Nashville Jazz Orchestra, there is plenty of jazz happening on a daily basis. It’s ain’t all honky tonk and hallelujahs.

Nestled within the fertile valley surrounding the Cumberland River, the mystical abode of Taylor Swift and Johnny Cash’s cabin, a jazz-folk singer-songwriter has been diligently honing her skills for the better part of a decade. A regular at local singer-songwriter institutions and a prolific composer and performer, Mandy Cook has been whittling away—sometimes quietly, sometimes not so quietly—at her craft. That artisan attitude has recently paid off, bearing ripe fruit in Cook’s recent full-length release, “See.”

If you’ve seen her live, you’ll agree that one of the most astounding things about Cook’s musicianship is her striking stage presence. While some musician struggle with nerves, she is as comfortable with a guitar in hand or in front of a microphone as she would be settling down into an old armchair. The nonchalance is palpable, and it comes across through the recording. She’s also an avid scatter, and some singers will admit that scat can be awkward. With too many attempts melodically derailed by the distraction of choosing between pronouncing a “zwee-bop” versus a “zoobie-doop,” so many would-be scatters never truly transform the voice into a nonverbal instrument (see David Lee Roth’s monochromatic, 22-syllable endeavor). Not so with Mandy Cook, who scats with a Jarreauesque fluency. Fortunately, there is plenty of improvisational glossolalia on her debut full-length studio album, “See.”

“Flip a Coin” begins with Cook’s signature strum and breathy vocals, which blend perfectly with Matt Lovell’s harmonies. Brennan Smiley and Jonathan Crone lay down an appropriately varied guitar backdrop, bringing the song to a rolling boil, only to float away in steamy wisps.

Strongly evoking classic Steely Dan, the sultry shuffle of “Spinning” sounds ready-made for mutton chops and California drives with the top down. The production is just enough, lending the song only the texture it needs to shine and nothing more. Because the song itself is catchy as hell—it’s why there’s a “repeat” option on your iPod.

In the title track, Cook starts off in her comfort zone, with bare voice and guitar. One of the striking things about Cook is how totally unreliant she is of effects, orchestration, studio gadgetry, or frills of any sort. Few singers have her ability to totally captivate an audience to the point of musical thralldom without sonic legerdemain or aural fireworks using nothing but her unadorned voice, and “See” demonstrates this thoroughly.

Cowritten with producer Billy Smiley, “Drag You Around” begins with a molasses-thick backbeat that implies hand claps both in feel and timbre. It also features Lovell’s backing vocals, which are nearly prominent enough to make this arguably a bonafide duet—wherein both singers drag each other around. After that, Cook drips into her slinky best with “Just No Good at Being Bad,” in which she slides with serpentine grace through a slow and humid shuffle with more estrogen than Norah Jones ever had.

If you can imagine what “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas” would sound like if it were a jazz tune set in the Bayou, that’s “Mississippi Voodoo.” The fumes of stale bourbon all but emanate from the speakers, and it’s as if Tom Waits set to music some grisly tale of otherworldly intoxication, penned by Tom Wolfe or William S. Burroughs, set in the Deep South. Slithering, swinging, and finally sinking, it’s some dirty swamp music if ever there was such a thing.

“Lose Myself In You,” which lands somewhere between Alison Krauss and Springsteen, is the kind of genre-unspecific pop that has universal appeal. Zorin McGuire’s sparse drumming is probably just about what Jim Keltner would’ve done, and beneath that Anthony Sallee lays a gentle heartbeat, right in the pocket. Brennan Smiley mists an ambient sprinkling of guitar over this parfait to create a dark, intimate pop that’s ready for both radio and soundtrack.

A child of the ‘80s, Cook sounds a little more like a flower child in “Heartache.” Blair Masters chose a flute patch that brings to mind “Strawberry Fields Forever,” particularly the way he walks down half-stepwise through major and minor seventh chords. Not that “Heartache” sounds like a Beatles cover. If it’s like anything from that era, it’s closer to Joni Mitchell, but it’s anchored solidly enough in 2015 not to sound like an imitation.

The smoke gets in one’s eyes with “Hope.” One of Cook’s own from her private collection, it sounds like something from Seal’s ‘90s catalogue, tastefully redone with voice, piano, and cello. Cook delivers another flawless ballad with the aplomb of a crowd-silencing Jessica Rabbit and with none of the ornamental kitsch or insincere bombast of her peers. Whereas most R&B vocalists would have drowned it in melismatic nonsense—Amy Winehouse would have wrestled this song to the ground and forced gin down its throat—Cook nurses it tenderly, almost mournfully. She’s able to deliver the sweetest, most soulful lines without any kind of virtuosic superficiality, genuinely nurturing each note with the ease and simplicity of moving her hands gently through tendrils of smoke.

“Undone” moves with an equatorial sway that’s evocative of an Edie Brickell tempered by the clean, even keel of 10,000 Maniacs. If an older, slower Barrett Strong were into surf rock, he might have come up with something similar. Amid carefree burst of scat and hand claps, the tune playfully suggests that “Some girls are better left undone.” And going out on a high note with “Lauren,” Cook shuffles and saunters her way through a please-don’t-hurt-him-style love song that goes out with a wave goodbye from a telecaster, punctuated by a final, whimsical “plonk” from the piano.

Legends have to be born sometime. Where Mandy Cook will go over the coming decades is yet to be seen, but with a studio debut as strong as “See,” the future is looking good. Don’t be surprised to hear one of her singles on TV or the radio or even in the theater.

The Independent was fortunate to land an interview with Mandy Cook, who was generous enough to let us pick her brain.

Jason Gottfried: So hey! I know you’re busy, so thanks so much for taking the time for this. Other than this album, obviously, what have you been up to over the past few years? I recall hearing something about you and Keb’ Mo’.

Mandy Cook: I did get to play with Keb’ Mo’! He is someone that I’ve idolized since the first time I heard his music. I have a few mutual friends—writers that he’s collaborated with and musicians who have toured with him—who invited me to this annual party Keb’ throws. I started jamming with some of the other musicians at the party while Keb’ was in the other room. About halfway through “My Funny Valentine,” Keb’ walked up to the guy playing guitar and said, “Gimme that guitar, boy.” Then he sat down, and we finished out the tune. And of course, his playing was beautiful.

The past couple of years I’ve also continued to collaborate with other writers, and we’ve had some small cuts. It’s always exciting when someone else falls in love with a song enough to make it their own.

JG: When I left Nashville a few years ago, you were playing the Hotel Indigo fairly regularly, which is perfectly located downtown and is very hospitable towards the singer-songwriter scene there.

MC: Hotel Indigo was what helped me make the leap from wannabe to full-timer. My weekly shows there have given me the stability that a lot of musicians don’t have the luxury of. Hotel Indigo has really welcomed me as part of their brand as well, inviting me to represent them at brand conferences from coast to coast. I currently play at the Nashville Hotel Indigo several times a week when I’m in town.

JG: Are you pursuing being signed by a major label?

MC: Labels are not something I have actively pursued yet. I’m too busy to go chasing after them. If the right one comes along with a great offer, I would jump on it. But I also love the grassroots-indie approach.

JG: I figured as much. How do you feel about the pursuit of getting signed anymore? It amazes me how people still flock to Nashville to pitch their songs. Seems like most people with a laptop and a microphone can pull something off in 2015 … for better or for worse. Bandcamp.com is both a gold mine and a minefield. I’ve heard both some amazing stuff as well as some truly God-awful garbage!

MC: I would love to have the financial backing and resources of a label, but I think most of us realized the industry has changed dramatically in terms of labels. Being an independent musician is a 24-7 job. I do hope to have a stellar team around me one day so that I can focus more on being an artist than a business woman, but that doesn’t have to come from a label anymore. The great thing is that labels are not a necessity anymore. No one has to own you in order for your music to get out there.

I think we should stop worrying about getting signed and figure out how to change the fan-audience dynamic to make it democratic and sustainable.

JG: I hear that. So what about you? I’m sure people would love to know about your influences, when and how you started playing, and so on.

MC: That’s a big question! I started training vocally when I was 12. My cousin, Kristy Hanson, always sang and wrote, and I think I really looked up to her for that. She would let me fool around on her guitar when our families got together for Christmas. My mom hunted me down a 12-string Yamaha when I was 14 or so, and that was what I started teaching myself on.

JG: Yikes, you started on a 12-string? That’s like learning to swim with weights. Playing a classical must be pretty easy for you now. And you started writing on that, I take it?

MC: Yep. I’ve always loved writing in every mode: poetry, short stories, etc. When I picked up the guitar, it was only natural that I wrote a song before I ever learned someone else’s. Joni Mitchell was my first and foremost writing inspiration as a teenager. Especially the albums “Clouds” and “Blue.” Conor Oberst and Ani DiFranco were really strong influences back then as well.

I really came into my own style after becoming familiar with more jazz-influenced artists like Nina Simone and Tom Waits in my late teens and early 20s.

JG: So in the midst of all this activity, you’ve gotten married, right?

MC: I was often told that I could NOT have any form of romantic relationship if I was going to do music … mostly by creepy old music industry men.

JG: Typical.

MC: Ha! I am proud to say that my husband is the greatest supporter of my music on the planet, and my no. 1 team member. He’s a saint, though. I don’t think everyone is cut out for it.

I’m also proud to pay the bills solely with music now. I’m ready to take the next step and really start getting out on the road with my artistry.

JG: Speaking of which, let’s talk about the album. You’ve given it the title, “See.” Does that hold some significance?

MC: The title track came out of my decision that this was it, music was all there was for me. The song itself is about the person who couldn’t “See” that there was no me without the music. I had to see it first, though.

JG: And the cover photo, of course. You’re like a bejeweled Miranda Carmen. Shout out to Craig Hill!

MC: I’ll tell Craig you say hi! Craig took the raw photo for the cover, and then the jewels and flowers were illustrated by an artist named Marie Bjerre out of Denmark. You can follow her on instagram via @moronoa. The rest of the photos were taken by Melissa Madison Fuller.

JG: So how exactly did this album come about?

MC: My producer, Billy Smiley, stumbled upon me playing in Nashville, and he was really jazzed about the music. We met a couple of times afterwards and decided to collaborate together. He really made the whole project possible.

JG: Had you recorded any of these songs previously? I seem to recall a prior version of “Mississippi Voodoo.”

MC: Yes! I’ve been working off of my acoustic album for a couple of years now. It shares three tracks with this new album, which presents them studio-album-style. All the bells and whistles, but still the same vibe.

JG: Other than “Mississippi Voodoo,” and perhaps “Spinning,” I’m not sure I’ve heard any of these before. Have you been writing a lot? How much of your catalogue of songs does this album represent?

MC: I write a lot when I have the time, both for myself and to pitch to other artists. This is a small but select sampling of what’s in my catalogue. I’m already close to having enough solid material for the next album, but I’m really proud and excited to share this material with the world for right now.

I also participate in this fantastic songwriters’ group that turns in a song on a given prompt every Sunday. It’s a great way to keep a sharp pen.

JG: You have a couple songs on this album that were cowritten with Matt Lovell, who also sings with you. I seem to recall you working with Matt in the past.

MC: Matt and I know each other from playing a regular writer’s round together. When we finally started getting together to cowrite, it was magic. “Flip a Coin,” the first track on this album, was the first song we wrote together. He sings on that track as well as “Drag You Around.”

We’ve taken multiple trips down to Florida to write with our friend, Tim Jackson—who also helped pen “See,” the title track—and at one point, we were even roommates. Matt is currently working hard on a killer single. He’s one of my very favorite artists in Nashville.

JG: Collaboration is kind of a cultural institution within the Nashville music scene, isn’t it? Any thoughts on that?

MC: Hmmmm, when I first moved to Nashville I was so staunchly against cowriting. I thought I had some perfect sound that would spoil if someone else touched it. So goes being young and naive! Ha ha!

Granted, if you don’t have good rapport with your cowriters, it can be an awkward disaster. David Walker was the first cowrite where it made sense to me that two heads could be better than one. I now love to write with other people. Although I still love to get a good song in alone every once in a while, too!

David was one of the first people I met in Nashville. I started doing demo vocals in his studio shortly after I moved here. We have great chemistry writing together as well. He helped me write “Spinning,” “Just No Good at Being Bad,” and “Heartache.”

JG: And you have another cowrite here with Gene Cook—you father, I presume?

MC: Ha! Actually Gene and I are neither related nor married. We’ve been friends for a while now and have shared a couple rounds at The Bluebird. He brought the bare bones of “Lose Myself” to me, thinking it would be a good fit for my voice, and I fell in love with the melody. He’s a treat to see if you ever get the chance—beautiful voice, and a heck of a guitar player.

JG: Of course, someone’s gotta bring these songs to fruition in the studio, and the guys you pulled in nailed it.

MC: Brennan Smiley laid down a lot of the electric guitar on this album. He’s both my producer’s son and the frontman for The Technicolors. Zorin McGuire was our drummer. As well as being a member of The Technicolors, he’s out on the road frequently with Bootsy Collins. Blair Masters laid down anything with keys on the album. He’s played for everyone from Sawyer Brown to Amy Grant. Anthony Sallee played all the electric bass, with Byron House playing upright. Anthony was a member of the band White Heart and will be playing a number of the CD release shows.

JG: Are you going to be touring?

MC: Coming soon! I’m booking for this upcoming winter and spring right now. I’m looking to do lots of house shows along the way, so hit a girl up!

JG: Any future plans?

MC: Gonna tour the heck out of this album. There will probably be a Christmas release this year as well. As far as the next album, I’m already chomping at the bit to start recording! I’d really love to collaborate with a creative producer, someone like Matt Hales, who produced Lianne La Havas‘ two albums, someone who really gets the pocket.

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Mandy Cook’s new album, “See,” is available on all major digital fronts, including iTunes and Amazon, and you can also order a hard copy through Cook’s Etsy shop.