Whatever Happened to Romance? (USA)

Whatever Happened to Romance? is the debut album from "singing waitress" (as she has become known) Victoria Hart. Having garnered her nickname from a lucky turn of events that found her getting plucked from obscurity to perform for actor George Clooney at a party in France, in truth, Hart has had the good fortune to be discovered twice in her life. First, at age 15 while living with her parents in France, she was heard singing at a party at a vineyard by producer Geoff Gurd, who was so impressed he took her under his wing and began recording her — a creative partnership featured on this album. Second, in 2007 while working as a singing waitress at a restaurant in London, the 18-year-old Hart was invited to perform for a benefit party during the Cannes Film Festival hosted by Clooney and other stars, including Brad Pitt. The story was a press sensation and not soon after Hart had signed a purportedly one-million-dollar contract with Decca Records. Hence, Whatever Happened to Romance? is the fruit of the aforementioned tabloid story/record deal whirlwind. Featuring Hart's kittenish, old Hollywood glamour persona and '40s jazz singing style, the album is not dissimilar to work by other neo-crooners such as Michael Bublé, Harry Connick, Jr., and to a lesser degree Amy Winehouse. However, while a pleasant presence on record and an obviously charismatic performer, Hart has a somewhat thin, technically average voice, and separated from the press hype essentially comes off as a cabaret vocalist with a knack for campy, jazzish pop tunes. Refreshingly, producer Gurd has supplied her with a handful of all-original songs mixing pop/rock and jazz as well as a few well-chosen cover tunes that allow Hart's apple-cheeked talents to shine.