BLOSSOM DEARIE - Blossom Dearie Sings Comden and Green (1959-2001) RM / FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Buoyed by the success of Ella Fitzgerald's songbook series, Verve executive Norman Granz suggested to one of his other artists, Blossom Dearie, that she tackle the canon of lyricists Betty Comden and Adolph Green. But while Ella's acrobatic voice proved more than a match for any brand of songwriter (especially heavyweights like Gershwin, Porter, and Berlin), Dearie's porcelain vocals and restrained theatrics didn't immediately leap to mind when thinking of Comden and Green's exuberant material. Still, Blossom Dearie Sings Comden and Green is an interesting songbook, a collection of ten standards done Dearie's way, like no other. Usually accompanied just by bassist Ray Brown and drummer Ed Thigpen, she exercises a great deal of restraint for the usually confident "Just in Time." When the same technique is applied to "Dance Only With Me," however, losing just a few steps of the song's waltz tempo proves nearly fatal. Also, Dearie's voice isn't as strong as on her earlier records; perhaps the slight drop in songwriting quality is as much to blame as vocal strain. The date does pick up when Kenny Burrell arrives for the second side (he provides a deft accompaniment to "The Party's Over" and "Lonely Town"), though as darling as Dearie's voice is, the similarity of the material drags down even the sprightliest songbird. by John Bush  
Tracklist:
1 Lucky to Be Me 4:02
Leonard Bernstein / Betty Comden / Adolph Green
2 Just in Time 3:33
Betty Comden / Adolph Green / Jule Styne
3 Some Other Time 3:57
Leonard Bernstein / Betty Comden / Adolph Green
4 Dance Only with Me 2:58
Betty Comden / Adolph Green / Jule Styne
5 I Like Myself 3:31
Betty Comden / Adolph Green / André Previn
6 The Party's Over 4:22
Betty Comden / Adolph Green / Jule Styne
7 How Will He Know 2:54
Betty Comden / Adolph Green / Jule Styne
8 It's Love 2:50
Leonard Bernstein / Betty Comden / Adolph Green
9 Hold Me, Hold Me, Hold Me 3:25
Betty Comden / Adolph Green / Jule Styne
10 Lonely Town 3:33
Leonard Bernstein / Betty Comden / Adolph Green
Credits:
Bass – Ray Brown
Drums – Ed Thigpen
Guitar – Kenny Burrell (tracks: 6 to 10)
Lyrics By [All Lyrics By] – Betty Comden And Adolph Green
Producer [Original Recordings Produced By] – Norman Granz
Vocals, Piano – Blossom Dearie

VANESSA RUBIN - I'm Glad There Is You : A Tribute to Carmen McRae (1994) APE (image+.cue), lossless

 
 This Vanessa Rubin release is a tribute to Carmen McRae. Although she cites McRae as a major influence, Rubin actually does not sound much like her and leans as much toward middle-of-the-road music as jazz. Also, not all of these songs are really identified with McRae (most notably "Send in the Clowns" which was largely owned by Sarah Vaughan). The ballad-dominated set does have a reasonable amount of variety, Rubin gets off some fine scatting on "Yardbird Suite" and she introduces an excellent original in "No Strings Attached." A variety of guests (including Grover Washington, Jr., Frank Foster, Antonio Hart, Cecil Bridgewater, Kenny Burrell and Monty Alexander) only appear on one or two songs apiece and do not make that much of an impression. However Vanessa Rubin's attractive voice is strong enough to carry the music and this release is a step forward for her.  by Scott Yanow
Tracklist:
1 Yardbird Suite 3:30
Eddie Jefferson / Charlie Parker
2 I'm Glad There Is You 7:00
Jimmy Dorsey / Paul Mertz
3 Midnight Sun 5:33
Sonny Burke / Lionel Hampton / Johnny Mercer
4 Inside a Silent Tear 6:10
Blossom Dearie / A. King
5 No Strings Attached 6:10
Vanessa Rubin
6 Alfie 6:30
Burt Bacharach / Hal David
7 Speak Low 6:50
Ogden Nash / Kurt Weill
8 Easy Living 6:05
Ralph Rainger / Leo Robin
9 A Child Is Born 3:43
Thad Jones
10 Send in the Clowns 6:31
Stephen Sondheim
Credits
Monty Alexander - Piano
Cecil Bridgewater - Producer, Trumpet
Kenny Burrell - Guitar
Charles Fambrough - Arranger, Bass
Frank Foster - Sax (Tenor)
Aaron Graves - Piano
Antonio Hart - Sax (Alto)
Yoron Israel - Drums
Carlos McKinney - Piano
Michael Rubin - Percussion
Vanessa Rubin - Arranger, Composer, Producer, Vocals
Grover Washington, Jr. - Sax (Soprano), Sax (Tenor)
 

SYLVIA SYMS - ... Then Along Came Bill : A Tribute to Bill Evans (1989) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Sylvia Syms sang everything from cabaret to pop and jazz during her long career, and this tribute to the pianist Bill Evans, recorded nearly a decade after his death and just a few years prior to her passing at the age of 79, is a fine effort. Accompanied by Evans' longtime bassist Eddie Gomez, Evans' final drummer Joe LaBarbera, pianist Mike Renzi, and several guests who recorded with the late pianist on occasion, Syms brings out the essence of each of the 14 songs, though only one is an Evans' composition. Syms, who often described herself as a saloon singer and counted Frank Sinatra among her admirers, has a slightly smoky voice with a touch of vibrato due to being in her late seventies, but she knows how to make the most of her pipes. Renzi wisely doesn't attempt to mimic Evans' style at the keyboard, while the guests include flugelhornist Art Farmer, harmonica player Toots Thielemans, guitarist Kenny Burrell, and drummer Grady Tate (who spells LaBarbera on four tracks). Among the highlights are the soft bossa nova treatment of "The Touch of Your Lips," the playful rendition of "A Sleepin' Bee," and the touching finale of "Waltz for Debby." by Ken Dryden  

Tracklist:

1 Like Someone in Love 3:23

Johnny Burke / James Van Heusen

2 My Romance 4:34

Lorenz Hart / Richard Rodgers

3 A Sleepin' Bee 5:01

Harold Arlen / Truman Capote

4 I Believe in You 5:13

Frank Loesser

5 Polka Dots and Moonbeams 5:40

Johnny Burke / James Van Heusen

6 Hi-Lili, Hi-Lo 5:18

Helen Deutsch / Bronislaw Kaper

7 How About You? 3:34

Ralph Freed / James Van Heusen / Burton Lane

8 The Touch of Your Lips 3:56

Ray Noble

9 My Foolish Heart 5:08

Ned Washington / Victor Young

10 But Beautiful 4:48

Johnny Burke / James Van Heusen

11 Nobody Else But Me 5:16

Oscar Hammerstein II / Jerome Kern

12 After You, Who? 3:25

Cole Porter

13 Lucky to Be Me 3:15

Leonard Bernstein / Betty Comden / Adolph Green

14 Waltz for Debby 2:04

Bill Evans / Gene Lees

Credits:

Kenny Burrell - Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric)

Art Farmer - Flugelhorn

Eddie Gomez - Bass (Acoustic)

Mike Renzi - Arranger, Conductor, Fender Rhodes, Piano

Sylvia Syms - Vocals

Grady Tate - Drums

Toots Thielemans - Harmonica

BLOSSOM DEARIE - My Gentleman Friend (1959-2003) RM / FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

 
The most expressive of jazz vocalists, Blossom Dearie's first three records for Verve -- all masterpieces -- displayed an artist with an uncommon ability to transfer a well-worn standard into a new song, usually informed by her light touch with piano and voice as well as her delightful coquette persona. My Gentleman Friend, her final full-length for the label, suffers only in comparison to her previous work; with fewer all-time standards available from her performing repertoire, Dearie was forced to resort to a few French titles and many middle-rank or then-current standards. It doesn't come as a surprise, then, that the song with the most compositional weight -- George and Ira Gershwin's "Someone to Watch Over Me" -- is the highlight. Dearie gracefully tiptoes through the classic, her reading rosy and meditative. Another Gershwin tune, "Little Jazz Bird," leads off the record with Dearie affecting her usual blend of warmth and insouciance. Aside from those two, the rest of the material is Blossom by numbers: simply average, forgettable songs given solid readings. The backing very nearly makes up for the lack of great compositions -- Dearie leads a quartet comprising her piano, Kenny Burrell on guitar, Ray Brown on bass, and Ed Thigpen on drums. by John Bush 
Tracklist:
1     Little Jazz Bird 3:43   
George Gershwin / Ira Gershwin
2     Gentleman Friend 3:49   
Arnold B. Horwitt / Richard Lewine
3     It's Too Good to Talk About Now 3:09    
Cy Coleman / Carolyn Leigh
4     Chez Moi 3:09
Jean Féline / Paul Misraki / Bruce Sievier
5     You Fascinate Me So 3:33
Cy Coleman / Carolyn Leigh
6     You've Got Something I Want 2:37   
7     Boum 2:10
Charles Trénet
8     L' Étang 2:27
Paul Misraki
9     Hello Love 2:51   
10     Someone to Watch Over Me 5:57
George Gershwin / Ira Gershwin
Credits:
Bass – Ray Brown
Drums – Ed Thigpen
Flute – Bobby Jaspar (tracks: 4, 7, 8)
Guitar – Kenny Burrell
Piano – Blossom Dearie (tracks: 1 to 5, 7 to 10)
Producer [Original Recordings Produced By] – Norman Granz
Vocals – Blossom Dearie