An ambitious concept album that assembles a clutch of familiar romantic ballads into a narrative arc charting the birth of romance,
A Prelude to a Kiss: The Story of a Love Affair remains
Jeri Southern's most fully realized and consistent effort, evoking
Frank Sinatra's classic late-'50s Capitol albums in both scope and tenor. Paired with arranger Gus Levene, whose richly melancholy backings are essential to the album's unified mood,
Southern brings a sense of cinéma vérité to songs like "Speak Low" and "The Touch of Your Lips," transforming the familiar lyrics into deeply personal expressions as intimate as diary entries. ~ Jason Ankeny