Melissa Errico, a Tony-nominated actress who has sung lead roles, wooing adult crowds many times over, has this time taken on a new challenge. With this album, she sings to both adult and child—or more so, to mother and baby—to create a new kind of album that resonates with both audiences alike.
Lullabies & Wildflowers is the second solo music project from singer/actress Melissa Errico and it seems she has met the challenge.
Errico has sung lead roles in Anna Karenina, Les Miserables, and My Fair Lady. She has also starred in several roles in television and film. But her role this time around is more personal, and her inspiration came from the process of bringing her own daughter, Victoria, into the world in 2006.
She remembers the formative times experienced among the women in her prenatal group, "I didn't know if I was going to be a good mother or even what the heck it means to be a mother in the first place. And there I met a group of women who were wondering the same things that I was."
Errico's collection of experiences with these women, their professions of fears and love, inspired the choices of songs, and her interpretation of them.
Upon receiving the album, I popped it in, and my wife and I tested it out. My wife is four months pregnant, and we were babysitting a 7 year old for the day. The music did its job, entertaining all three of us and putting us in a playful and nurturing mood.
In a press release, Errico speaks of the process of creation on the album. She says, "I felt everything so deeply. But I sang it directly, as if to the ears of a child. I sang vocally for the babies, for those innocent faces, but psychologically for the mothers." She adds later, "There's no mask, no makeup, no artifice: This is really me."
Lullabies & Wildflowers reflects the journey of a new mother and is composed of contemporary classics from greats such as Lennon/McCartney, Tom Petty, and Judy Collins, as well as traditional children's songs and two originals.
Musically, the songs are soft, jazzy, and upbeat. Errico's voice is beautiful and happy, and the lyrics are easy to understand. The music is balanced and accompanies her well, never overwhelming her vocals. It is as if you can hear Errico smiling the whole way through.
The album brims with a gentle, playful mood and is a one-of-a-kind baby and mommy pleaser. It will not appeal to everyone, but for new parents, grandparents, or anyone who want to remember a once-upon-a-time when the innocence of childhood was all around, this album is a definite winner.
Feeds