Scissors in My Pocket

Polly Paulusma | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 14, 2004)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: One Little Indian Us
• ASIN: B0002VESVE
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #269,903 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Undiscovered?, November 23, 2004

By 

Daniel M. Cohen "filmmaker1225" (Santa Monica CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Scissors in My Pocket (Audio CD)

I don't "review", but I felt compelled to say something about this so far, unheralded, arrival. "Scissors in My Pocket," in my opinion, is the the most engaging album of original material since Patty Griffin appeared on the singer/songwriter scene. But Polly Paulusma, who I understand, hails from the UK, is completely her own woman. This, unlike so many other singer/songwriter debuts boasts its own special identity. The music and lyrics are are fresh and arresting, delivered with a distinctive rhythm and diction. Ms. Paulusma's delicate, but insistent voice is the perfect vehicle for her quietly arresting material. Given the smoothly understated style, you might first look to the success of Norah Jones as the ignition for Ms. Paulusma's discovery, but the light she sheds is truly her own. Try as I might, I couldn't find "filler" on this album. Will she join the ranks of Joni Mitchell and Laura Nyro one day? Who knows, but "Scissors" is a delight all the way through, with outstanding high points.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars She Moves In Secret Ways, February 27, 2005

By 

S. Shaker "Sasha" (London United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Scissors in My Pocket (Audio CD)

This is without doubt one of the best debut albums I have ever heard. Apparently Paula Paulusma is British. I live in London and yet have seen no coverage of her on television or in the newspapers; nobody I know has heard of her. i cant quite understand how this has come about, as the album was released a few months ago. But mark my words, this album will explode in the same way that Damien Rice's "O" ran and ran. It is only a matter of time. Get in quick, buy 5 copies right now, one for yourself and one for each of your four closest friends. This CD begs to be heard - the lyrics are strong and vividly original, the melodies are catchy enough to stay with you for hours after hearing them. And best of all, seis nothing like I have heard before. Polly Paulusma really is something special, every track is a gem.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Arrival Of A Young Great Voice, May 25, 2004

By 

Juan Mobili (Valley Cottage, NY USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Scissors in My Pocket (Audio CD)

First, I'd like to have all comparisons put away -as odious as they can be. To compare her with Joni Mitchell is not right or wrong, it's simply absurd and unfair. It is absurd to compare a first album to an artist who's a standard for Folk music and who has produced stunning work, both musically and lyrically for over thirty years -sure, there's the 80's ... but even those years could cause the envy of many singers-songwriters- and who has given us not just great songs but anthems for more than one generation. That is why it 's also unfair ... what service could it provide a young, talented artist to be compared to a legend of popular music?
Actually, if you're looking for a "frame of reference," someone you may be familiar with, to figure out what she sounds like, I'd think of Norah Jones -second and last comparison- since her voice, her tone more than her phrasing, does remind you of the young American singer. Now, where Jones is "jazzier," Polly Paulusma is "folkier". OK ... end of comparisons. Polly is indeed a great a new arrival, someone I ventured to expect only greater things from, although if this were to be her only album, she should be proud of it, and you should be happy to own it. Paulusma is a great singer and an extremely accomplished composer, in other words, a great, new voice.
Wow ... what a tender sensibility, what a capacity to evoke the intimacy of her thoughts and feelings in song after song! If she's as young as I understand she is, Polly must have the benefit of past lives to bestow upon her such maturity. From "Dark Side" on -the very first song- her lyrics announce her poetic craft ("it gets cold on my dark side of the moon / the air is thin and chill / come and show me what the gray world looks like when it's blue") or, in "I Was Made To Love You" when she sings "if I send you my angel, would you send your to me?."
See, most people associate tenderness with youth, I'd say it's a sign of early, yet serious, wisdom. "She Moves n Secret Ways" -perhaps, where my thoughts of Norah Jones arose from- is another stunning example of her singing and songwriting's talent, listen to her beautiful singing over a gorgeous melody, where she says "on a river of sighs, a boat came toward me / a flimsy disguise covered the devil / who sang from a song sheet of how modern life's a bore / in his choirboys' attire, he sang me the life / to which good girls aspire, where men in white coats / give us pills to tame the horses that stamp on our floors / and pills for when the horses have bolted out the door." I don't know about you but I'm impressed, this is not clever technique, this is a woman, sweetly, waving the fierce flag of her right to express her power. And there's "Carry Home" and "Mea Culpa" which are simply pretty, as long as "pretty" is a word you've learned to respect. "Anywhere From Here" is another felicitous marriage of words and melody, in a serious way. So is "Something To Remember Me By." Yes ... I'm already looking forward to a long and enriching contribution from her. Call it what she's inspired me to expect but, make sure, to spare her any pressure. Thank you, Polly.