I’m this-close to pulling the trigger on what has become a half-yearly tradition of musical gorging over at Amazon UK, where after months of waiting for artists to surface on this side of the pond, my patience (of which there’s not much to begin with) has finally run out. Such is the life of the overly musically enthused.

Reviewing my virtual shopping cart, I’ve run up quite a tally of physical product, my still-preferred format when given the option. As a rule, I try not to feature artists whose songs aren’t available for download here, so it’s welcome news that Rumer, one of my new UK finds, has wisely put her songs up for sale on her site (if you can accept the conversion from pounds to dollars). And Rumer’s work is such a great tonal fit for fall that today I’m closing out my short-run series with it.

First things first: this Rumer is not the oldest child of Bruce Willis and Demi Moore, whipping her hair back and forth a la Willow Smith. Though she too takes her name from the author Rumer Godden, this British singer-songwriter (then Sarah Joyce) was born to ex-pats living in Pakistan, the youngest of seven children. After the family moved back to England, her parents split and she discovered her father was, in fact, the family’s Pakinstani cook.

After leaving school at 16, Rumer studied art and fronted the indie-rock band La Honda for a time, beginning in 2000. When her mother, who already suffered from mental illness, was diagnosed with breast cancer, Rumer went to live near her. Her mom succumbed to the disease in 2003, and Rumer relocated to London with a renewed determination to make it in the music business. It’s been a rough road, but the setbacks and restarts have fueled the beauty and magic of Rumer’s debut album, Seasons Of My Soul, released at the start of November in the UK.

I haven’t even mentioned Rumer’s voice, which hearkens back to a time when Karen Carpenter, Carole King, and Laura Nyro could be heard on the AM airwaves. She crafts songs in the singer-songwriter tradition of the ’70s, so very captivating, warm and wistful. The musical result has earned high praise from no less than the master of easy-listening melodies himself, Burt Bacharach, who flew her over for tea at his home in Los Angeles. “You can’t get higher validation than that,” Rumer says. “It doesn’t matter if the record company thinks you’re good or if your family thinks your good or if your friends think you’re good. If Burt Bacharach says you’re good, it’s time to start believing in yourself.” So impressed with her talent, he’s even given Rumer a new song to record.

Like the great songwriters in whose footsteps she so clearly follows, the 31-year-old Rumer has drawn from her personal journey to craft songs that “weave a spell where we can all fall into a beautiful, musical dream.” Lovely tunes like “Aretha,” for instance, in which Rumer finds comfort in the sounds of the Queen of Soul. Songs like this one are what I wish radio was required to play around this time of year, no matter the decade:

Not available via iTunes or Amazon MP3, you can purchase Rumer – “Aretha” right now via her official website, where her debut LP, Seasons Of My Soul, can also be downloaded. A vinyl edition of the album is available too, with different artwork and tracklisting for those interested in really revliving the glory days.

I also recommend giving up your email address to Rumer for a free download of “Long, Long Day,” a cover of Paul Simon’s song from 1983’s One-Trick Pony, and another good tune to add to your fall-themed playlist.