On “I Wish You Love,” a swooning cover of a classic that appears on Typical of Me, the 22-year-old singer evokes Roberta Flack oldies and early Tracey Thorne. Many of the songs were composed in Laufey’s dorm room at Berklee College of Music when she was a student.
The song “I Wish You Love” has an interesting backstory: it was composed by Charles Trenet and recorded many times in France during the 1940s before Albert Beach wrote an English-language version. “I Wish You Love” joined the prestigious group of songs known as “standards” after it was covered by everyone from Dean Martin to Chet Baker to Sam Cooke to Frank Sinatra to Johnny Mathis — and Gloria Lynne’s version became a Top 40 hit in 1964.
The majority of singers maintain the original’s swaying tempo. In 1971, the great New York Salsoul singer Joe Bataan recorded a standout version of “I Wish You Love.” Bataan pushed the time limit past nine minutes. Initially, he describes it as a lovely ballad that evokes the innocence of 1950s doo-wop; this could easily be compared to Cooke or Martin’s versions. Bataan, on the other hand, turns the song into a fiery salsa, complete with hard piano vamps, vocal call and response, and densely syncopated percussion.
While some of her musical references are vintage, Laufey is a keen student of modern promotional methods, and she’s been promoting her “I Wish You Love” on social media for quite a while. On TikTok, she has accumulated an impressive following of over 250,000 followers.
