Claude Fontaine

American singer Claude Fontaine was nursing a broken heart in London when she stumbled into an obsession that would shape her art dramatically. Channeling vintage reggae and Brazilian sounds and working with some key players from classic reggae circles, she crafted a stylized hybrid of influence, homage, and lovelorn songwriting on her self-titled 2019 debut. Based out of Los Angeles, Fontaine's early musical output was limited to the occasional self-produced track she would share online. Following a bad breakup, she decamped for a time to London to collect herself. While out one day for an aimless, melancholy stroll, she happened into the Honest Jon's record shop and was overwhelmed with inspiration upon hearing the classic reggae, dub, and rocksteady records they were playing in the store. Over a stretch of time, she absorbed the sounds and character of Jamaican music from the '60s and '70s, as well as Tropicalia and vintage Brazilian music. She began writing her own songs in the style of those dusty tracks, and through a series of networking miracles, she was able to enlist players like drummer Airto Moreira, guitarist Tony Chin, and bassist Ronnie McQueen to bring her vision to life. These studio musicians had pedigrees that included work on hits from Althea and Donna, Astrud Gilberto, Miles Davis, Steel Pulse, and King Tubby, and she put their authentic backgrounds to work on her retro-fitted debut album. Recorded in part at the studio Chet Baker once called home, the self-titled album was released in spring of 2019. ~ Fred Thomas