''Two Shots'' is the second studio album by Canadian

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

singer

Matt Dusk Matthew-Aaron Dusk (born November 19, 1978) is a Canadian jazz vocalist. He has four certified gold albums: '' Two Shots'', '' Good News'', ''Old School Yule!'' and ''JetSetJazz'', and two certified platinum albums; ''My Funny Valentine: The Che ...

. It was released globally by

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...

on June 15, 2004. The album was primarily produced by Robin Smith, Nigel Lowis, and Terry Sawchuk. ''Two Shots'' was very successful in Canada, where it was certified

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

. It also was released with modest success in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, reaching number ten on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' Top Contemporary Jazz albums chart.

Critical reception

Aaron Latham of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

gave praise to Dusk's

Rat Pack The Rat Pack was an informal group of singers that, in its second iteration, ultimately made films and appeared together in Las Vegas casino venues. They originated in the late 1940s and early 1950s as a group of A-list show business friends, s ...

homage on the opening track, "The Theme From Loaded Gun" and "Five" but felt he relied too much on it to form his own musical identity and didn't give the rest of the track listing "an indelible impression", concluding that "this does not mean that ''Two Shots'' is not worthy of a listen as it is a quality debut that will appeal to anyone who enjoys pop standards. But if he can sift out the ghosts of the past and find his own voice in these songs, he has the chance to create a disc that truly showcases the unique talent of Matt Dusk."

Track listing

Charts

References

{{Authority control 2004 albums Matt Dusk albums Decca Records albums