Male cabaret singers, and baritones in particular, are in somewhat short supply at the moment but fortunately for us all, one such vocalist, Charles Cermele, has followed up his delightful first album (Look In My Eyes) with a strong second set of songs.

Cermele, together with his gifted arranger Christopher Marlowe, has mined a deep vein of American songwriting talent in selecting the material he uses. Either George Gershwin or Harold Arlen had a hand in creating the vast majority of the songs, but the familiarity of these works is enhanced by innovative arrangements making such standards as ‘A Sleepin’ Bee’, ‘My Shining Hour’ and ‘Ask Me Again’ a joy to revisit and rediscover.

Overall, the pace is relaxed, with ‘I Remember You’ and ‘Can’t Help Falling in Love’ both sung in an unusually slow tempo which ultimately gives way to a sweeping, expansive finale. The latter song has a particularly sympathetic accompaniment which reflects the changing mood and tone which Cermele imparts to the words. ‘Strike Up the Band’ is delivered with a gradual and relentless accelerando – it’s almost like being on board a train that is pulling slowly out of the station. These are by no means the only songs in which contrasting pace and register are used to take the listener on new journeys over familiar tracks.

Glimpses of Cermele’s humour and love of his family history are offered in the briefest track on the record, 20 seconds of patter, the inclusion of which adds one more strand to the very personal tapestry which is weaved on this album.

Cermele’s warmth and humour are evident not only in the light-hearted ‘Come on-a My House’ but also in the way a gentle smile seems to pervade each recording. There is a benevolent presence behind each song which endows Cermele’s singing with a brighter sound than most baritones achieve.

Perhaps ‘Blues in the Night’ best exemplifies many of the qualities already described; as in his first album, Cermele carefully contrasts a staccato delivery of some parts of the song with a more legato approach elsewhere. This is an unmistakably urban sound, not world-weary or insouciant but, thanks to precise diction and well-formed phrasing, ultimately optimistic, lifting the mood and offering a sense of something worth striving for.