Sarah Stanley’s Tuesday Girl (RMC Records)

Sarah Stanley’s third CD (the first I’ve heard from her) evidences minor folk and rock influences but mostly delivers mainstream pop, with rich production, lilting music and lyrics that focus on the ups and downs of love affairs. The L.A.-based Stanley, whose songs have been featured on primetime TV, is a capable performer whose sultry, quavering vocals convey emotion and sensuality. At their best, moreover, her songs (all of which she wrote or cowrote) find fresh ways to address old topics. Witness the melancholy “Bluebirds and Daffodils,” which manages to weave a technology theme into a tale of lost love. Also noteworthy is the title cut (not to be confused with “When You’re a Tuesday Girl” by the Tuesdays), about an unfaithful boyfriend. While the album is auspicious, however, it isn’t likely to be the one that puts the singer over the top. Stanley is playing in a crowded field and my take is that she needs to hone her approach a bit more to stand out.