Sandra-Mae Lux on Seasons In Jazz

We’ve all heard the saying ‘Don’t judge a book by its cover’. But, once you've actually seen the front cover to the album Seasons In Jazz, that may be easier said than done. It's fairly difficult not to be drawn in by the colourful and decorative artwork for the new album by singer and saxophonist Sandra-Mae Lux, and it just so happens that, on this occasion, an impressive album cover matches a very impressive album.

I recently spoke to Sandra-Mae about the influences behind the album title, the importance of musical partnerships and the Great American Songbook, and how she welcomes other musicians performing her material…

Seasons In Jazz is such an interesting title — what inspired the theme, and how do the seasons influence the music on the album?

I think we can't help as humans but be affected by the changing seasons, especially when we have four very defined times of the year. This album really mirrors the changing nature of love as we turn the pages of a calendar, and the inspiration came from my own love of autumn. It's my favorite season; I just love the crispness of the air, the sunlight, the way it just sort of glows. I love the smell of smoke in the air - it's magical. For years I’ve wanted to write a song about autumn, so about three years ago I said to my writing partner, ‘Alan, we need to write a song about autumn’. We were sitting down, and I was convinced we were going to make this happen and write something, and he said, ‘I'm sorry, but a song about New Year wants to come out...’.

The thing about songwriting is that you never force something out, so it didn't want to come out then. Fast forward a few years and ‘When Autumn Calls’ just fell out in a very organic way. And we thought, ‘hey if we can do this with one song, why don't we expand that to all the seasons, and see what happens?’. It was almost like a challenge to see if we could. That was the first real jazz standard we'd ever written, so it just kind of all fell out and came together…and here we are!

You’ve mentioned your musical partner, Alan Marriott. How important was that partnership in bringing this album to fruition?

It was essential. He's my writing partner, so he's lyrics and I'm melody – he’s Hammerstein and I'm Richard Rodgers, or I'm Elton John and he's Bernie Taupin. I think when you work with someone that you really trust, love and understand, it's almost like you don't really need words to make things happen – they just happen. I honestly think that people who write in pairs just write incredible songs. We just end up bringing out the best parts of each person and combining two minds to create something that transcends the talents that we individually have.

With the Great American Songbook remaining as timeless as ever, was it challenging to create fresh material that captures that quintessential sound? 

‘There is no try,’ to use the words of Yoda. If you try, you will not succeed, or it will sound forced or contrived. I mean, I went to jazz school. I've been listening to this stuff since I was a child; it was jangling in the house when I was growing up. The same goes for Alan too, so this AABA classic songwriting structure is one we grew up with. It's in our blood and in our bones. 

It's such a clear form that feels very organic, and preparation is 90% of it. So first we prepare how we want the song to feel; what do we want to talk about? Then we think about how we want it to sound. But again, it always must start from an authentic feeling, and then when inspiration strikes you can take hold of that idea through the form, so that it can be translated into something that wonderful people like you can listen to. I just think that the Great American Songbook structure is just such a wonderful way to express form and inspiration. I won't say it was easy, but it was very natural and flowing.

Can you tell us about your contributions as both a vocalist and an instrumentalist on the album? Why do both?

Well, I got the best sax player I could find… for the money! 

Jokes aside, I play the saxophone, so I thought that I might as well put it on the album!

Compared to your previous work, how does Seasons In Jazz represent your growth or shift as an artist?

So, my previous album, Happily Ever Now was my first album, and again, Alan and I wrote it together. That was very much based in the soul, funk, disco and R&B genres. I grew up with Etta James and Donny Hathaway – all the classic soul, but if you listen to the album, you can hear all the jazz chords in it.

I actually got complaints in the recording session that it was really hard, because it was just all jazz chords... I was recently fresh out of jazz school, flexing my muscles, and this album wanted to come out. It's funny, I graduated from jazz school and I did a soul album. But I kind of had to exercise that bit of me; I don't think I was ready to write the jazz stuff. You can't force it out. And you know what? There's enough time. This is a lifelong pursuit, a lifelong exploration. That's the thing about being an artist, there is no ‘Oh, I’ve got to get it done’, because you never get it done. So just enjoy the journey! 

I read that ‘Everyone Else Knew’ is your favourite track on the album. Why is that? 

To be honest, I think it's the best song that we've ever written so far. Just the form, the way the melody sits, how the verse sets up the rest of the song…it's just a lovely piece. And the way it came about was so organic and flowing. I think it's just beautiful, and I'm a sucker for a sad song or a good ballad!

Were there any tracks that came together surprisingly quickly—or ones that were especially difficult to finish?

No, none of them felt that way. There was not one moment where it felt like effort, and the moment that it did feel a little bit like we were kind of stuck, we put everything down and walked away. Maybe you walk away for two weeks, it could be a month – with the Autumn song, it was three years – but you just put it down, and it will tell you when it wants to come about. It will call you to it. Just allowing the songs to come out is so much easier, and it’s so much more fun.

What do you hope listeners take away from Seasons In Jazz?

I really want people to just feel good when they listen to it. I think that's within the power of the artist. I mean, is there anything better than feeling good, putting on an album and just having this atmosphere of loveliness wash over you, of knowing that you're in safe hands? That's what I’d really like people to take away from this and into their own lives.

I think also with this album, it would be the greatest compliment if other artists were to sing these songs. I mean, what greater joy would I get as an artist for another artist to be so inspired that they want to record the song, play the song, or play it at a gig? I mean, we only sing songs that we like, so for someone to love it so much that they want to do it…that’s a huge compliment in terms of the songwriting; so go – sing it, do it, it's out there!

What’s next after Seasons In Jazz: any touring or new projects?

I have a gig at the 606 which is the album launch on the 29th of May, and I'm doing a couple little gigs around town on the Spice of Life on the 16th of June, and then Teddington Jazz Festival on the 22nd of June. But we have a rolodex of more songs that we have little bits to, so I guess I'll just keep working on them and we’ll see what happens! 

Seasons of Jazz is available for purchase on Friday 30th May 2025 with ECN Music.