Madeleine Peyroux and Paula Cole performed on tour together last Thursday at the Green Music Center. Peyroux performed her hit album, “Careless Love,” and Cole performed from her record album, “This Fire.”

Performing first was Peyroux, with Andy Ezren on piano, Paul Lewinski on the upright bass, and Graham Hawthorne on the drums. Peyroux’s set included “Careless Love” and her rendition of “Dance Me to the End of Love.” 

Madeleine Peyroux was born in Athens, Georgia, and moved around her childhood from New York to California before moving to Paris at the age of 15. Peyroux began singing with street performers in the Latin Quarter of Paris. The many universities and institutions for higher learning located there create a lively atmosphere and increased options for student life in the area, making street performances a common occurrence. She then joined “the lost wandering and blues and jazz band” and toured across Europe with them. 

Cole’s 1996 album, “This Fire” is having its 25th anniversary this year and was a part of the setlist for her performance. For this album performance, Cole was on stage with Ross Gallagher on the upright bass, Chris Bruce on the Guitar, and Jay Bellarose on the drums. Bellarose has been playing with Cole since they were 19. 

“It means so much to me that you all are cool and compliant so we can be out here!” said Cole on the mask mandates for visitors of the Green Music Center. Other venues around the county and state have employed similar guidelines to curb the spread of COVID-19. 

Paula Cole was raised in Rockport, Massachusetts by her parents Stephanie and Jim Cole where she fell in love with musical theatre. Cole then attended the Berklee College of Music where she studied jazz. After graduating, Cole wrote her triple Grammy-nominated song, “Where Have all the Cowboys Gone?” Her song, “I Don’t Want to Wait,” was used as the theme song for the American teen drama show, “Dawson’s Creek.” Cole has also been a part of the voice faculty at Berklee College of Music. 

“I don’t listen to jazz a lot but I appreciate it when I can.” says third-year transfer student, Chad Henry. Like many SSU students, Henry went to the performance to write a review for it for class. “I’ve definitely heard some of those songs before and it was really nice to be able to come and see this.”

Peyroux has been described by the New York times as having a vocal style similar to that of Billie Holliday, Ella Fitzgerald, and Edith Piaf. Her aforementioned album was also re-released as a deluxe version with live versions of the songs recorded at the Festival de Jazz de Vitoria-Gasteiz in Spain from 2005. 

The two singers have been touring the United States but ended their tour last week in Los Angeles.  Peyroux will be starting her “Careless Love Forever” world tour on Oct. 28 in Prague, Czech Republic. Cole just released her new album “American Quilt” which is available on streaming platforms.

To learn more about upcoming GMC events visit the GMC website.