Lucinda Belle Dazzles on ‘Baby Don’t Cry’

Pop diva Lucinda Belle drops “Baby Don’t Cry.”

Originally from the UK, Belle was literally a child prodigy at the harp. Most people thought she would enter the world of classical music. Yet she fooled them, choosing to do her own thing, which was making a unique sound called jazz harp, which amalgamates pop, jazz, blues, hip-hop, and reggae with classical music.

Belle was working in London, running her laundry business, when Decca Records contacted her. They wanted her to sign a recording contract. Belle signed, sold the business, and after a while moved to sunny California, where she proved she was indeed a prodigy. Her song “Going Nowhere” was nominated for an Oscar; she landed the role of Dixie Darling in The Drowned Man; and worked with some of the biggest names in music: Natalie Cole, Seal, Yes, Grace Jones, Annie Lennox, The Pet Shop Boys, and Jamiroquai.

She dropped an EP, Urban Lullabies, at the end of 2018. On the EP, she covers Nirvana, T.I., Paolo Nutini, and John Mayer.

“Baby Don’t Cry” opens on an elegant, romantic piano, as Belle croons wistfully. Flowing strings enter, backed by oozing horns full of Spanish savors, giving the tune a definite retro flavor. All at once, the harmonics mousse up, delivering a bluesy jazz jolt, like a kick in the pants. Scrumptious vocal harmonies swell in the backdrop, as Belle’s gorgeously buff tones take over.

The retro aroma of the tune channels the big band jazz sound of almost a century ago, pre-WW II days, when Peggy Lee and Billie Holiday ignited the atmosphere with sultry timbres. Only this time, it’s Lucinda Belle strutting her vocal talent.

Lucinda Belle has it going on. “Baby Don’t Cry” is superb, from the first note to the last.

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