"Summertown" is the collaborative

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

by Australian singer songwriter

Deborah Conway Deborah Ann Conway (born 8 August 1959) is an Australian rock singer-songwriter and guitarist, and had a career as a model and actress. She was a founding member of the 1980s rock band Do-Ré-Mi with their top 5 hit "Man Overboard". Conw ...

and Willy Zygier. It was released in August 2004 via Another Intercrops Production. It is Conway's sixth studio album. A music video for "Something's Right" was released in 2004 to promote the album.

Background and release

Upon release, Conway and Zygier said; "We started talking about songs we liked from a pre-electronic era; artists like

Simon & Garfunkel Simon & Garfunkel were an American folk rock duo consisting of the singer-songwriter Paul Simon and the singer Art Garfunkel. They were one of the best-selling music groups of the 1960s, and their biggest hits—including the electric remix of " ...

, The Mammas and the Pappas,

Jimmy Webb Jimmy Layne Webb (born August 15, 1946) is an American songwriter, composer, and singer. He has written numerous platinum-selling songs, including " Up, Up and Away", "By the Time I Get to Phoenix", "MacArthur Park", "Wichita Lineman", "Worst ...

James Taylor James Vernon Taylor (born March 12, 1948) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A six-time Grammy Award winner, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. He is one of the best-selling music artists of all time, havi ...

Carole King Carole King Klein (born Carol Joan Klein; February 9, 1942) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician who has been active since 1958, initially as one of the staff songwriters at 1650 Broadway and later as a solo artist. Regarded as one ...

all came up in our conversations along with many others. We didn’t want to recreate them but we wanted to evoke that spirit, that approach to song-craft; beautifully realised verses, choruses and bridges that seem to have always belonged together even before they came into being. Also a certain gentleness and warmth that we hadn’t explored seemed like the path that was beckoning. We’ve been angst, brittle, pissed off and depressed, let’s give peace a chance." adding "We expressly wanted to make an acoustic record and upright bass was the obvious route to take."

Critical reception

Kathy Macabe from

Daily Telegraph Daily or The Daily may refer to: Journalism * Daily newspaper, newspaper issued on five to seven day of most weeks * ''The Daily'' (podcast), a podcast by ''The New York Times'' * ''The Daily'' (News Corporation), a defunct US-based iPad new ...

said; "Blessed with an angelic voice, deft at lyrical wordplay and armed with a seemingly inexhaustive melody well, Conway – and partner Zygier – create songs which become best friends for life. You can hear the influence of her

Patsy Cline Patsy is a given name often used as a diminutive of the feminine given name Patricia or sometimes the masculine name Patrick, or occasionally other names containing the syllable "Pat" (such as Cleopatra, Patience, Patrice, or Patricia). Among I ...

tribute shows lingering in "One Chance", while "Accidents Happen In The Home" recalls Martha Davis. Beautifully played, you can hear every single note and the care taken to let the songs breathe." Annette Basile from

Rolling Stone Australia ''Rolling Stone'' Australia is the Australian edition of the United States' ''Rolling Stone'' magazine devoted to music, politics, and popular culture, published monthly. The Australian version of ''Rolling Stone'' was initially published in 197 ...

said; "There are two potentially scary aspects about ''Summertown''. Firstly, Deb Conway wants to be "mature"; and secondly, it's incredibly ambitious to aim to write songs as perfect as those of

et al. But these fears are unfounded. Apart from the odd uneasy moment, ''Summertown'' is magical." adding "Conway and Zygier create upbeat gems, dramatic ballad, lullabies and pop with country music being an almost unconscious influence." Barry Divola from Who Magazine said; "Conway's storytelling ability has developed to a point where she's not afraid to tackle the big old genres" adding " I've ploughed through many, many albums by female singer-songwriters of late that are either overly flowery or cloyingly self-obsessed, so it's pleasant to hear Conway tiptoeing a fairly steady line between heartbreak and infatuation with barely a hiccup."

Track listing

# "Stay On Track" # "Accidents Happen In The Home" # "Any Fool" # "Try To Save Your Song" # "Something's Right" # "Sunday Morning" (featuring

Toni Collette Toni Collette Galafassi (born Toni Collett; 1 November 1972) is an Australian actress, producer, singer, and songwriter. Known for her work in television and independent films, she has received various accolades throughout her career, includ ...

) # "One Chance" # "Sleepwalker" # "I Love You But" # "It Doesn't Work That Way" (with Paul Kelly) # "Heartache" # "Here And Now" * all tracks written by Conway and Zygier.

Credits

* Backing Vocals – Kim Wheeler * Musicians - Deborah Conway, Willy Zygier,

Gerry Hale Gerald Richard "Gerry" Hale (born 1959, Newmarket, Suffolk) is an English-born, Australian-based multi-instrumentalist and vocalist. He has worked as a session musician for the Soft Boys (1978–80) and was a band member of Bouncing Czecks (fl. ...

, James Black, Shannon Birchall * Additional musicians: Dave Williams,

, Paul Kelly, Kim Wheeler, Michael Barker

References

{{Authority control 2004 albums Deborah Conway albums