In the first weeks of January, why did we have to choose between Duffy and Adele? There’s room enough for both of them, of course; we just wish they lived up to the hype. The lusty, Dusty ‘Rockferry’, northern soul-style smash ‘Mercy’, and Walker Brothers pomp of ‘Distant Dreamer’ apart, this is too schmaltzy and clean cut for a singer with such verve, energy and a damn fine voice.