Janita  -  I'll Be Fine

Finland-the home of saunas, millions of lakes, long dark winters and midsummer nights when the Sun never sets. Not forgetting Soul music with a Latin flavour brought to you by a lady recently voted the most sensual woman in the land.!! No, I did not invent the last sentence just to grab your attention. The lady in question is Janita who has just emerged via New York with a new album which is receiving rave reviews in the States including Top Forty album status in the NAC charts and a positive write-up in Billboard magazine.

 Born and raised in Finland she has already released 3 albums in that country to some acclaim. Bored with School (Yes, she is THAT young!) she along with her mentor Tomi Sachary decided to try their luck in the States. The result after some five years is this wonderful album., which has yet to achieve a worldwide distribution deal. Still, you can be amongst the first to appreciate the talent of this artiste.

All the songs on the album combine influences of RnB,Soul and Brazilian music with just a shade of pop on the album’s last track ‘Fruit Of Another ‘. This in fact sounds very Michael Jacksonish in influence but that should not put you off. Indeed the Old Skool feel is evident throughout drawing our attention to real instruments and short simple songs all with killer melodies and strong lyrics expressing life’s experiences through the eyes of a young mature lady.

From the first track-‘Firefly’- you know that you are in for a treat as the vocals and strings combine to captivate you into a Vybe that although fresh is reminiscence of the obligatory Vocal track that one always finds on the better Smooth Jazz albums.

The title track ‘ I’ll Be Fine ‘ follows and takes a Bossa Nova beat which again is dominated by a strong melody and equally strong knob twirling from Mr Sachary.

’ Angel Eyes’ is Janita’s favorite from the album, which features a 16 piece String Orchestra from the land of the long dark nights and provides a romantic interlude of some note. Just think of roaring open fires and low lights and you get the picture.!!

With ‘Heaven’ the album returns to its natural rhythm and Latin flavour. Although it has to be said that this is all very low key stuff AKA Slim Man and Sade.

With a backing band that includes Gene Lake, the drummer with Me’shell N’degeOcello and further musicians from the D’Angelo camp you can see that this lady has a remarkable future.

Be amongst the first to experience the Vybe of Janita by ordering her album through her Web site on www.janita.com and tell her that J.L. sent you.!!  

J.L. CERTIFIES 7/10. ONE FOR THE MOOD..................

JANITA : I’ll BE FINE.........REEL ART RECORDS..........ARTCD23.