Ruby Paul's new album has come of something of a surprise, not least to Ruby herself. “I started working on a live set with guitarist Richard Lower, and hey presto, before we knew it, there was a fully fledged album. Some projects just struggle and stagnate but this one just gathered momentum effortlessly.” Ruby's starting point was the songs of Karen Carpenter. “ I'm often told I sound like her”, she says, “so I wanted to look back to the era of karen Carpenter and jazz and bossa nova songs, the music of Burt Bacharach and Antonio Carlos Jobim”, adds Ruby, whose album includes covers of ‘Close To You' and ‘Ill never Fall In Love Again'. "It's a record that's more reflective of my live sound than the very big sound we had on ‘Velvet Glove'. That focused my mind on the arrangements and the vocal sound because there would be no overdubbing, simply one voice, one guitar”
The title track, ‘Forbidden Fruit', emerged last of all. “I knew I wanted to write a French song, like Edith Piath, Madeleine Peroux or Carla Bruni: something sexy. ‘Forbidden Fruit ‘came to mind and then it was written very quickly at the end of making the album, and in terms of imagery, it stood out as the best. Richard and I rehearsed it on the Tuesday and recorded it on the Wednesday, while my daughter was at playgroup.Ruby closes the album with ‘Soundtrack To My Life', which sums up the purpose of the album and Ruby's feelings about Karen Carpenter. “For me, the ultimate purpose of singing is to share a secret with the listener. This is what I feel I have in common with Karen, a singer who sang from the heart, but not ostentatiously.”