Judie Tzuke - Press Cuttings.
The following article was published in the PLYMOUTH WESTERN EVENING HERALD in 1978.
Every now and then a star comes crashing to earth shaking the ground and scattering fragments of a new world. Judie Tzuke is such a star. She came crashing into my world with 'Welcome To The Cruise', her first album. So great the impact, I still try to gather my sensibilities to think the album out constructively as you read this. Judie Tzuke is 23 and a unique singer with her own very distinct style. At the worst she is a meaty Kate Bush and at the best she is herself - a sort of contemporary Joni Mitchell with an exciting simplicity. But here is not the naivety of Ms Bush but a simplicity that lays quietly on top of a well researched and intelligent musical mattress, strung with the neo-classical and contemporary. The title track perhaps best illustrates her style. Above a mystical layer of orchestral themes and almost oriental rhythms, Judie Tzuke spreads her own soft yet crystal-clear voice, backed by her own dubbed harmonies. These harmonies are used to the full on 'For You', the single that got away but which is included on the album. Here, unaccompanied save for the occasional burst of string quartet, Judie makes a giant sandwich of voices each with its own subtle flavour but all from the same throat. She writes her own material with band guitarist Mike Paxman, and good stuff it is too. 'Welcome To The Cruise' is obviously an album that has been carefully produced to give Judie Tzuke a head start in the wild, wild business. I just hope that her live performances don't let us down because, having Welcomed us to The Cruise, we can't refuse the trip.
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