Susan Hodgdon - So in Love with Cole

​Susan Hodgdon

​​So in Love with Cole
self-released; 2018

​3.9 out of 5

By Matt Jensen

Susan Hodgdon is a musician from New York who has played in plenty of venues and clubs in the city and just released her second album entitled So in Love with Cole. The album celebrates the work of Cole Porter and the American Songbook. Porter is a musical figure that I don’t think too many people are familiar with today. He died in 1964 and while he was alive was a prolific songwriter.

Hodgdon presents these songs in a classic jazzy cabaret fashion. The songs are very well produced and recorded but there is also a sense you could be listening to these songs in a jazz club located in the artistic sections of New York City.

The album gets going with an upbeat swing of “You'd Be so Nice to Come Home To.” Hodgdon sounds confident and sincere and the music is played beautifully. “Get Out of Town” and “It’s All Right with Me” are a slower, late night affair that bleeds with melancholy and solace.

The mood is more festive on “Why Can’t You Behave” which is a song that is delivered in a way that I think is perfect for dancing. Another standout was “All of You” which for some reason had me thinking of the geographical location of New York although that's not what the song is about.

The album contains a total of seventeen tracks and I found the sequential order to be just about perfect. Hodgdon paces out the album’s energy with lively songs, contemplative pieces and much more. I felt there was a lot to consume but Hodgdon made it feel like a performance.

​It was a treat to be able to listen to these versions of songs that I think don’t get their due. Hodgdon not only did justice to these songs in her own right but hopefully inspired people to seek out the original recordings as well.

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