“You’re Looking at Me” is the latest single from Cece Bullard off her wonderful EP “My One and Only Love”. Bullard who comes from a lineage of performers has had the joys of working alongside acts like Stephen Stills, Graham Nash, Joe Williams, and Jack Jones to just name a few. She’s had the privilege to delve deep into Jazz and continue honing her voice in this illustrious genre and it pays off in spades in “You’re Looking at Me”, which sees an almost seemingly down and out Bullard looking back on loves lost by both her fault and by others. She delivers a truly charismatic performance, one that I certainly can’t wait to see on a stage again with hopefully due time.
Something I truly admire in the spirit of this song is that how despite how successful and large Bullard has become, the view of the song is intimate and close. By all accounts, the song could have just devolved into champagne tears, or been offputting, but Bullard always keeps us on her side, even when she takes accountability for playing the game and losing. It’s a lengthy piece, but one that’s never static and has a rich texture thanks to the accompaniment of Grammy nominee Otmaro Ruiz. They happily exist together in their own worlds, playfully in orbit with each other. The instrumentation that we hear is so wonderfully straightforward, but fluid like a body of water, and the way Bullard plays off the sparkling notes and keys feel like an almost neon lava-soaked trip through a melancholic mind that’s making peace with herself. It might be hard to overstate how excellent this song is because I genuinely can’t find any faults with its presentation, and the mixing and mastering on the track are just gorgeous, effectively nailing the balance needed for both parties to co-exist on this track.
AMAZON: https://music.amazon.ca/albums/B08ZQ8WXFP
Should anyone be hesitant or think they have an idea of what a modern Jazz sound might be, throw those notions in the trash because this song is a winner. It contains a scrappy soul, but it’s presented with gorgeous confident pseudo bombast of a victory lap era winner. Nothing would make me happier than being able to walk around stores, cafes, and clubs alike and be able to hear this song even just casually playing in the distance. I genuinely think with time, it’ll be the kind of track many artists both up-and-comers and veterans will want to cover, and we might get a few good versions since Bullard’s blueprint is so tremendously strong, but nothing in the world will ever top her. She’s just unstoppable, even when she says that she’s lost some battles.
When she was younger, Bullard once escorted an aging Ella Fitzgerald during a performance, and I cannot imagine the impact that had on her in her youth, but I also earnestly believe that Miss Fitzgerald would have become a die-hard fan of the work that Bullard has produced. I cannot recommend this track enough.
Troy Johnstone