Emma Smith, Bitter Orange Review

Bitter Orange: Emma Smith’s Swing, Soul, and Subtle Fire

By Sylvannia Garutch

Bitter Orange is Emma Smith’s debut for American jazz audiences and a confident artistic statement from a vocalist who already has deep respect across the UK and Europe. With Jamie Safir on piano, Conor Chaplin on double bass, and Luke Tomlinson on drums, her long-standing trio of more than a decade, Smith crafts an album steeped in the heritage of vocal jazz. Her singing offers something distinctly identifiable with an unfiltered blend of technique, tone, and fearless musicality. The interplay between the quartet is grounded in friendship and mutual trust, a quality that radiates through the record’s twelve tracks.

“I’m the Greatest Star” abounds with a joyous swing. Smith’s full-bodied vocals sit effortlessly in the pocket, and the quartet leans fully into their role as swing purveyors, shaping the feel around her with instinctive precision. Her last chorus brims with confidence and flair. Smith’s vocal tone and melody improvisations will keep the listener to stay for the ride.

“What Took You So Long?” is a Smith original co-written with Safir. The song wears the frame of a classic jazz standard while pulsing with modern personality. The melody is instantly memorable, and Smith’s delivery is flirty and expressive, each phrase a little adventure in tone and color. She embellishes the line with deft jazz inflections, balancing playfulness with narrative weight. Safir’s piano solo slots in perfectly, supported by Tomlinson’s attentive drumming, further underlining the tune’s timeless-yet-fresh character.

Her interpretation of Noël Coward’s “London Pride” is a modern vocal jazz gem, reimagined as an upbeat jazz waltz. Smith fuses the song’s wartime heritage with her own contemporary style, shaping phrases that are respectful of its history and alive with her personal voice, and shaping with jazz embellishments. The rhythmic lift of the waltz, paired with her expressive timbre, gives the track an irresistible charm.

“My Funny Valentine” is performed at a daringly slow tempo; the performance demands (and rewards) close listening. Every note places her tone and phrasing under the microscope, and she rises to the challenge with full control. Her wide range, subtle glissandos, and emotionally charged sustained notes turn this oft-covered ballad into an intimate, highly personal statement.

Across Bitter Orange, Smith draws from her inspirations, Ella Fitzgerald’s agility, Julie London’s warmth, and Cleo Laine’s fearless individuality, without ever mimicking them. Instead, she channels those influences into a sound that is unmistakably her own, framed by a trio that knows how to support without crowding. For listeners discovering her in the U.S., this album is an invitation into her world: gutsy, elegant, and deeply jazzy. For Smith, it’s not the start of the journey, but the arrival at a point where she’s fully ready to share every edge, curve, and shade of her artistry with jazz audiences on both sides of the pond.