Track Listing

1. Call Off The Search
2. Crawling Up A Hill
3. The Closest Thing To Crazy
4. My Aphrodisiac Is You
5. Learnin' The Blues
6. Blame It On The Moon
7. Belfast
8. I Think It's Going To Rain Today
9. Mockingbird
10. Tiger In The Night
11. Faraway Voice
12. Lilac Wine

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1983 in Music
• Released on: 2003-11-03
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.co.uk Review
No doubt 18-year-old Katie Melua has got used to being tagged "the next Norah Jones". After all, the similarities between her debut, Call Off the Search, and Jones's own five-Grammy-winning Come Away with Me more than support the comparison. Both feature precociously graceful and accomplished singers swirling through a haze of sweetly sensual sways--warm, slurred and gloriously lazy--and both certainly belong in the same stress-relieving rack in the easy-listening section. Yet to view Melua as a soundalike is to miss the strength and allure of her own distinctive character. Hers is intimate contemplation spiced with the jazzy drama of an off-Broadway musical. From the flamboyant inflections of her voice and the drowsy orchestra backing "The Closest Thing to Crazy" and "Learnin' the Blues", to the honky-tonk seduction of "My Aphrodisiac Is You", there's a street-smart attitude to her tender swoon that means the image of a dimly lit basement is never far away. With the velvety lounge of "Blame It on the Moon", the dreamy romance of the title track and the devilish blues of "Crawling Up a Hill", it's an eccentric and charming collection that very much stands Melua as a talent in her own right. --Dan Gennoe

CD Description
'Call Off The Search' is the debut album from Georgia born singer/songwriter Katie Melua. Produced and co-written by Mike Batt, the album is a mix of contemporary adult pop, jazz,blues and world music. The single 'The Closest Thing To Crazy' is also included.

Customer Reviews

A restoration of faith
I stopped buying CD's in this genre ages ago because everyone seemed to come from the same 'factory'. Then I caught "The closest thing to crazy" on the Terry Wogan show. I was so bowled over by it that I stopped the car to listen properly. What an amazing voice! An order for the CD followed quickly and I was not disappointed. This girl is undoubtedly one to watch. About 18 months on I'm still putting the headphones on late at night and playing "Lilac Wine" over and over... People keep comparing Katie with Norah Jones but her emotional involvement, dynamic & musical range, and pure artistry remind me far more of Barbra Streisand, and I can offer no greater compliment. Can't wait to hear the new album!!

A Star is born
I had the chance to hear some of the tracks of CALL OFF THE SEARCH already and was blown away. Katie Melua is a new Talent discovered by Composer and Arranger Mike Batt. The Album has a jazzy and bluesy feel and reminds on old classics by Ella Fitzgerald. Katie's Voice is so brillant and she wrote some of the songs herself. Katie sings classics like "Climbing Up A Hill" as well as her own compositions like "Spider's Web".

But the real winner of the Album is her first Single. Mike Batt's new arrangement of "Closest Thing To Crazy" which has been played on BBC2 already and many Fans have signed her Guestbook on her own website www.katiemelua.com asking for her Album or Single.

When I first heard some of the tracks I had to think: "Ah, yes. This is exactly what I missed in our charts for all those years."
It made me feel warm and cozy and I can't wait to hear the rest of the Album.
Now finally her Album is available. Let's buy it and play that old fashioned music again.... (and again...and again...)

An exceptional new talent
What an excellent album - all the tracks are subtle, different, with a bluesy jazzy rocky thing going on that makes her hard to pigeon-hole
For all lovers of Nora Jones, Eva Cassidy, Dido or just good well crafted and original songs - get it and love it!