5 comments about 12 Songs of Christmas.

1. I've purchased this cd after listening to one of the tracks on some internet radio. Now I can say that all of the songs are great and it was a good decision to get this album. If you like good jazz, if you like Christmas time and songs - even in the summer - then you should definitely buy it!



2. No real surprises on the song choices but a nice addition to my Christmas CDs.



3. Etta James is the Queen of Sass... I truly enjoyed this CD this past holiday season... a good one to have in the collection; and to share with family and friends @ the X-mas party!



4. I purchased this album several years ago, but not being much of a "reviewer" it has taken me a bit to write this down.
   Simply said, this album is a pleasure to hear come the holiday season. Always tasteful, the arrangements never come off as "Kenny-G" jazz. This is an album aimed for the traditional jazz fan and probably should be passed over by anyone looking for a "smooth jazz" angle.
   Indeed, the phrasings are classic Etta (although the other reviewers are not incorrect for noting that in her in her 60's Etta is losing her range, but still a wonderful, full-bodied singer.)
   If I was to single a track out, it would be "The Little Drummer Boy." It always seemed odd that the drummers quintessential tune was never given its proper due. While still lacking an all out solo, Etta sings around the drums so as to give it room to explore. The song closes with a wonderful solo which gives way to the finale of two Christmas classics.
   This album will never be considered a Jazz Xmas classic in the way that Vince Guaraldi's soundtrack to the Penuts Christmas cartoon. Yet, its essential to note that Etta's goal wasn't to rewrite the rules of Christmas albums. The goal was to take a set of Christmas standards and to give them that classic jazz feel. In this way, Etta passes with without question.
   An excellent Christmas gift for that Jazz fan in your family. What an album. Highly recommended.



5. This is for Etta James' real fans, the ones who have listened to her through her career and still want to hear more from her, even realizing that she is past her prime. Her voice still has that warm quality and she still has the style that gives one the feeling that she is singing particularly for the individual listener.

   Of course, this is of the jazz genre. But Etta is so respectful of both the secular and the serious Christmas music. Her opening number, "Christmas Wonderland", is very inviting, and features great work from bass, piano, guitar, and trumpet. This is one of Etta's charms, the way she gives plenty of space to the jazz musicians working with her.

   "Merry Christmas, Baby" is given a properly bluesy interpretation and besides her wonderful interpretation of the song, features solos from Red Halloway on Tenor Saxophone and Cedar Walton on piano.

   She gives lots of spirit to "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town", helped again by Cedar Walton's piano and also George Bohanon's trombone. This is followed with a transition...possibly the two greatest sentimental secular Christmas songs, before she goes into the more serious "The Little Drummer Boy", and then the traditional carols.

   Her "Silent Night" is indeed very moving and while there's a little improvisation in her performance and performances by Sametto James on Electric Bass and Red Halloway on Tenor Saxophone, there is respectful reverence here.

   The greatest surprise to me, and the song that I needed to listen to several times in order to appreciate the unusual presentation, was her slow paced rendition of "Joy To The World". I like to think that she was expressing an idea to us, that the type of joy experienced during these holidays need not be the wild, loud, hilarious kind, but rather a very deep inner joy which expresses itself in a soulful way. Again, great accompaniment maintaining the quiet yet joyful mood from Cedar Walton's Piano and Red Holloway's tenor sax.

   And then the effective closing cut is "O Holy Night". If you have any appreciation for jazz, I believe you will experience , while listening to this CD, how jazz can be used when in the hands of sincere artists to create a loving Christmas atmosphere.

2 comments about Walk Around Heaven: New Orleans Gospel Soul.

1. Once in a great while a singer comes along that moves your emotions with her songs. Her voice is dynamic and captivating.
   She sings from her soul with a passion and conviction that is rare among performers these days. Erma does not need a thousand word review. One word is enough to rate her music. Magnificent!



2. An NPR recording introduced me to Irma Thomas. Once I knew of her, she kept reappearing in other contexts - a folk and blues anthology, with Marcia Ball and Tracy Nelson ... and, of course, on her own recordings. The range of her recordings and artists recording with her are a tribute to her musicianship.

   Her gospel music on this album is consistently good and most of it is excellent esp. Hold to God's Unchanging Hand and Walk Around Heaven All Day. Her interpretation is both "traditional" and unique - you'll not mistake her for other greats such as Marion Williams or Mahilda Jackson ... but if you appreciate them you will enjoy Irma Thomas.

3 comments about These Foolish Things : The Classic Balladry Of Etta James.

1. This gritty soul-filled woman can move me like no other R&B singer. Her version of the classic These Foolish Things scales the octaves like 'a fairground's painted swings/these foolish things/remind me of you'. A mix of Holiday and Fitzgerald, Etta takes us with her as she loses herself in the music. When she wails I just want to do the same. And that's her magic, she knows, God how she knows, how a woman feels. A great cd a great singer.



2. If you can have but one blues cd...make it this one. Etta is at her very best in these recordings and brings a sweaty, kettle-about-to-boil-over passion reminiscent of Big Maybelle's Okey Sessions to these blues standards.
   The greats of the past must be smiling down from blues heaven on this disc...it is perfection!



3. The Classic Balladry Of Etta James.She sings with grace and class.She brings new meaning to the classic.The songs on this cd are a true testament of her singing ability.When Etta sings (You Cant Talk To A Fool) you can fell the pain in her voice with the hurt.Miss Etta James is one of the best singer of our times.And the last song on this cd (Hold Back the Tears) will move you .This is a hallmark of a great singer.This is a must have cd for all of Etta James fans.

3 comments about The Complete Recordings, Vol. 2 (1924-1925).

1. The whole Complete Recording series (Vol. 1 - 5) is a must get for any old-time jazz/blues collector, afficionado, lover. I knew I always liked Bessie, but in reality I'd only heard a few numbers that were often played (St. Louis Blues). Upon hearing her other stuff, she has become one of my all-time favorite musicians ever.
   These sets come with booklets that put perspect on each track. Be aware that the booklets overlap with the same info from one vol to another at the beginning of each one. But each one does offer new/different info towards the end.



2. Rough, rowdy, and precious was our dear
   Bessie. Treat your ears to a woman who
   still blows the competition away.
   
   Featuring nearly 2 hours of Bessie's best,
   this double disc collection contains 37 tracks
   and is a "must" for those who love early 1920s
   blues and jazz. A real treat here, for those
   who also love Armstrong's early cornet work (as
   mentioned in the other review) are seven tracks
   she did with Louis:
   
   St. Louis Blues (Jan. 24, 1925)
   Reckless Blues (Jan. 24, 1925)
   Sobbin' Hearted Blues (Jan. 24, 1925)
   Cold in Hand Blues (Jan. 24, 1925)
   You've Been a Good Ole Wagon (Jan. 24, 1925)
   
   Careless Love Blues (May 27, 1925)
   I Ain't Gonna Play No Second Fiddle (May 27, 1925)



3. Bessie Smith's greatest collaborations with Louis Armstrong--need I say more? Two of the greatest artists of their time working together to create some of the greatest music of the entire century. This is the best of the Complete Bessie Smith volumes to have--this is the artist in her (recording) prime.

5 comments about For Those in Love.

1. When this album was being recorded Dinah and Quincy were "doin' a little housekeeping" (making good music can be like making good love).
   
   My Aunt Mary was a big fan of Dinah. She used to come back from shows that Dinah did at Robert's Show Lounge on the Southside of Chicago and share what details she could with a kid not even close to being even a teenager. Dinah was an earthy,passionate woman with a "rich vocabulary", who liked to party. Thanks to Aunt Mary, I grew up on a steady diet of "the Queen". I drank from the Queen's well deeply and often. Still do...
   
   One of the things I remember about Dinah from the 50's was that she had a reputation for being a "wild woman", but there was some kind a reverence people in the African American community had for her at the same time. The woman could sing some blues, but this particular album showed how she could really read the lyric of a ballad telling the stories with a great depth of emotion. When she read songs like "If I Had You", people almost reacted like it was another book of the Bible. Dinah touched you way down inside with the truth of lived experience.
   
   If you listen to that song in particular, notice how before the first instrumental break she sings far behind the beat and then ahead of the beat and comes to rest right where she needed to! She is in total control, dancing around the established rythm and tells the story like a shared truth across the backyard fence.
   
   Its all good on this set. Not a throw away in the bunch. Blue Gardinia. I Could Write a Book. You Don't Know What Love Is. Although she stands out, front and center, she is also like another horn in the ensemble of stand-out instrumentalists including Paul Quinichette (Vice Prez), Cecil Payne, Clark Terry and the superb Wynton Kelly on piano. Quincy Jones really pulled this together, putting Dinah in a regal setting of some the best musicians of goldern era of jazz. "Dinah Jams" is the album of her's that is listed in the NPR 100, but THIS IS THE CLASSIC!
   
   In later days, though the arrangements were not of this high caliber, the power of Dinah's performanced lifted recordings like "Unforgetable" and "This Bitter Earth" to an elevated status in African American communities all over the U.S. She told a truth that made you throw down your hat and shout out loud: "Yeah, girl! Tell em,tell em 'bout it!"



2. Absolutely no one ever sang like Dinah Washington. She had a powerful voice,but knew intuitively how to modulate it within the emotionial content and peaks of the song. Her phrasing,diction,and command of the lyric was truly amazing and completely entrancing. Dinah had a bittersweet,tart and tender sound in her voice like Billie did. She could sing like an angel one minute and be very caustic the next.She reaches levels of high emotionial intensity in a non self-conscious,unpretentious way,and does so with such ease. Dinah had it over all the rest,in that, she was the first to bring the bluesy,gospel sound into jazz ballad singing. Her effervescence is completely infectious in "I Could Write A Book","Easy Living",etc. Torching her way through "My Old Flame","Blue Gardenia", and "Make the Man Love Me",the cry in her voice will cut you straight to the heart. Paul Quinchette and Wynton Kelly do alot of masterful solo work in this CD. There is track for every type of mood here with each song flowing like chapters in a book. Dinah,Paul,and Wynton sound completely relaxed,spontaneuous, and in unison here. They don't make singers,musicians,or even people like this anymore. ENJOY!!!



3. Much of Dinah Washington's music was ruined in my opinion by too many strings and syrupy arrangements. This is a great collection of songs -- some ballads and others that really swing -- and most have very spare arrangements, drums, bass, piano or guitar, a couple of horn(s) and, most importantly, Dinah's vocals pure and unadulterated. Recorded in 1955 with great session players and arrangments by Quincy Jones -- these are the real deal and don't get any better.



4. This is certainly one of Dinah's greatest albums. This 1955 treasure should certainly be admired by all of Dinah's biggest fans. My favorite song on this album is I Get A Kick Out Of You. Other favorites are This Can't Be Love and her soulful version of Blue Gardenia. Love this album. If youre a serious fan, get this one-even if you arent a jazz and blues fan youll like this album!



5. Well, the first thing you'll notice when you look at this album is the careful selection of songs. 10 songs that match in perfection Dinah's style. No songs about happy love with easy lyrics, but instead, songs about more complex emotions... like "You don't know what love is" - a beautiful (and very famous) song about the true consequences of love that one experiences after a love lost. Dinah's voice (like Billie Holiday's) is one of those who put deep feeling above the simple act of crooning through a song. The second major thing about this album is the careful use of the band (again, Quincy Jones shows us his magic!): Not a big orchestra with a full string section, but a small band with Wynton Kelly(p), Clark Terry(t), Barry Galbraith(g) and other peak musicians. This means that we have the best band with some of the 50's top Jazz players who give Dinah the perfect space for her strong, firm and wide voice. And what a voice! She sings through "My Old Flame" and "Blue Gardenia" with sheer perfection! All the songs were carefully chosen and most of these recordings present us with the best readings one can hope for. Dinah is the top and this album flashes her art. Only one flaw... I would love to listen to outakes, rehearsals and all the stuff they include in other albums....

5 comments about The Collection.

1. One of the beat CD collections I own.
   LOVE HER VOICE!



2. For the purist. Not digitally remastered so it does not have the same sound quality that we are used to hearing today. For that reason the lyrics will often be unclear and sound like they are being sung from very far off. And they are - the distant past.



3. This is a great disc. It is my first disc of old blues crooners and I plan to continue exploring the genre. She has so much SOUL!! The old analog sound gives character to the disc but is not too disracting from the music. You can feel the history in the recording but can easily feel and relate to the emotions that Betty is tellin.



4. This is a great disc. It is my first disc of old blues crooners and I plan to continue exploring the genre. She has so much SOUL!! The old analog sound gives character to the disc but is not too disracting from the music. You can feel the history in the recording but can easily feel and relate to the emotions that Betty is tellin.



5. The sound quality is excellent. Bessie Smith the singer is excellent. I've listened to the CD three times and enjoy it more each time I hear it. First rate. I'd give it 6 stars if there were that many available. She has a good voice for blues and she never sings off key. The piano backing is nice too. I look forward to listening to this CD again and again.

No comments about Dirty Blues.

1 comments about 1929-1933.

1. I've waited for this reissue for over 20 years. I found Joe Robichaux's "Stormy Weather" on 78 at a house sale, and the vitality and drive of the recording kept me wanting more. It was one of the best jazz bands I'd ever heard--New Orleans meets Swing for the first (and probably last) time.
   
   There was an LP set, which was way out of print by the time I discovered it. Then, about five years ago, I found the Document CD--which I was thankful to have. But the people at Document tend to truncate the frequencies, and I knew there was much more music in the grooves than on that reissue. (The Document CD does contain two alternate takes not available on the Jazz Oracle, which keeps it from becoming obsolete).
   
   You can imagine my delight when, by sheer chance, I managed to find an advance copy of the new Jazz Oracle reissue on eBay. Very shortly before, I'd complained on my RADIOLA! program about the inadequacy of the Document remasters and begged for a label such as Jazz Oracle to reissue the recordings as they should be heard. Well, in the new reissue, I've gotten everything I wanted. Ted Kendall, a protege of the great John R. T. Davies, has managed to transfer the full range of music to this disc. It's the next best thing to having the original shellac records and the proper stylus and equalization to play them--and a great deal less expensive.
   
   You hear the pulse of life here, and experience the deep joy of being a human being on this planet with each selection. I would have loved to have heard this band live--but this CD will more than suffice. Yowzah!

3 comments about Bessie Smith: The Complete Recordings, Vol. 2.

1. The whole Complete Recording series (Vol. 1 - 5) is a must get for any old-time jazz/blues collector, afficionado, lover. I knew I always liked Bessie, but in reality I'd only heard a few numbers that were often played (St. Louis Blues). Upon hearing her other stuff, she has become one of my all-time favorite musicians ever.
   These sets come with booklets that put perspect on each track. Be aware that the booklets overlap with the same info from one vol to another at the beginning of each one. But each one does offer new/different info towards the end.



2. Rough, rowdy, and precious was our dear
   Bessie. Treat your ears to a woman who
   still blows the competition away.
   
   Featuring nearly 2 hours of Bessie's best,
   this double disc collection contains 37 tracks
   and is a "must" for those who love early 1920s
   blues and jazz. A real treat here, for those
   who also love Armstrong's early cornet work (as
   mentioned in the other review) are seven tracks
   she did with Louis:
   
   St. Louis Blues (Jan. 24, 1925)
   Reckless Blues (Jan. 24, 1925)
   Sobbin' Hearted Blues (Jan. 24, 1925)
   Cold in Hand Blues (Jan. 24, 1925)
   You've Been a Good Ole Wagon (Jan. 24, 1925)
   
   Careless Love Blues (May 27, 1925)
   I Ain't Gonna Play No Second Fiddle (May 27, 1925)



3. Bessie Smith's greatest collaborations with Louis Armstrong--need I say more? Two of the greatest artists of their time working together to create some of the greatest music of the entire century. This is the best of the Complete Bessie Smith volumes to have--this is the artist in her (recording) prime.

No comments about Super Hits.