Vocalists — LPs  

A sweet bit of funky jazz vocals from Oscar Brown Jr – recorded during his early 70s stay at Atlantic Records, in a style that's very different than his early work! The tracks are all still original numbers by Oscar – penned with that clever bad-rapping approach to the lyrics that always earned him a huge audience in the cognoscenti. The feel is a bit more electric than before, with Richard Tee on electric piano, Cornell Dupree on guitar, and percussion by Ralph MacDonald. A few cuts have female backing vocals, and titles include "Gang Bang", "Feel the Fire", "Dime Away from a Hot Dog", and "Young Man".

Amazing stuff – and one of Chris Connor's greatest records for Atlantic! There's a depth to this set that passes some of her others from the time – partially because the album features a very hip set of tunes, written by Ornette Coleman, Norman Mapp, John Lewis, Peggy Lee, and others – and partially because the album has some sublime arrangements by Al Cohn that easily shift between darkness and swinging brilliance – all with that perfect sense of balance that Connor brought to her best sessions. Titles include "I'm Gonna Go Fishin", "Jump For Joy", "Night Bird", "Opportunity Please Knock", "Milano", "Day Dream", "Free Spirits", and a great version of "Lonely Woman"!

An incredibly lovely later album from Peggy Lee – her first album for Atlantic, and proof that she was still growing tremendously as an artist, well into the 70s! The record's title track was a tune written for Peggy by Paul McCartney, who also produced the number for the record – and it's got a wonderful "adult" feel – one that steps off even more from Peggy's last Capitol recordings. But in some way, the real star of the album is Dave Grusin – who co-produced the rest of the record along with Peggy, and who gives the session a warmly laidback jazz-based approach – one that's miles away from Peggy's 60s work, and handled in a maturely mellow groove that's totally great. The sound is tight, but never too slick – and Peggy's aging vocals sparkle beautifully amidst a host of modern tunes that include "He Is The One", "The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter", "You Make Me Feel Brand New", "Sweet Lov'liness", "Sweet Talk", "Always", and the funky classic "Easy Evil".

Recorded in the 70s, but a key document of the songwriting talents of George & Ira Gershwin – thanks to some timeless interpretations by the legendary Bobby Short! The style here is a bit less staid than you might think, and Bobby digs deep into the raspier side of his vocal range for some numbers – putting them forth with less of the polish than you usually get in this sort of "songbook" album – and almost recreating the intimacy of his famous live performances. Double-length album features a whopping 30 titles in all, some of which are oddly not by the Gershwins! Titles include "Love Walked In", "S Wonderful", "Feeling I'm Falling", "Drifting Along With The Tide", "A Foggy Day", "Feeling Sentimental", "Shall We Dance", "High Hat", and "Beginners Luck".

Wow, we never thought we'd see this one reissued! Andy Bey was originally a member of the jazz group Andy & The Bey Sisters – but by this time, he'd gone solo, and had done vocals on righteous political albums by Gary Bartz and Horace Silver. The groove here is nice and jazzy, with some funky stuff thrown in, and Andy's voice has a weird off-kilter sound that's very hard to describe, but which is extremely haunting! The album includes a remake of "Celestial Blues", which he did with Gary Bartz, plus the tracks "Being Uptight", "Tune Up", "Hibiscus", "Experience", and "The Power Of My Mind".

A haunting album cut by singer Little Jimmy Scott during his "lost years", between his classic 50's sessions, and his more recent comeback fame. The record's got a haunting sound that's a mix of jazz vocals and soul instrumentation, courtesy of arrangements by Arif Mardin and William Fischer, both of whom were doing some pretty off-kilter work at this point. The core instrumentation is by a group that includes Ron Carter, Billy Butler, and Junior Mance – and titles include "Our Day Will Come", "I Wish I Knew", "This Love Of Mine", and a very moody version of "Exodus". Great stuff, and one that we almost never see on vinyl!

One of the most haunting albums we've ever heard from Perry Como – a session recorded in Italy during the mid 60s – featuring arrangements by Nick Perito, and backing vocals by the Alessandro Alessandroni Singers! The tunes include a fair bit of older Italian numbers – some sung in the language of their origin, some in English translations that we've come to know on this side of the Atlantic – and Como takes them all with a sad-tinged style that makes the album one of his moodiest ever – a record that oozes melancholy with every song, and which has a late nite, heartbreaking appeal that goes beyond even the understanding of language. The set's a great one to convey the popularity of Italian work on the American market in the 60s – and Como carries off the session even better than some of the more likely singers on the scene during the period. Titles include "Souvenir D'Italie", "Forget Domani", "Anema E Core", "One Day Is Like Another", "Arrivederci Roma", "Oh Marie", and "E Lei".

Despite any prejudice you might have against Maynard Ferguson, he actually does a damn good job backing up Chris Connor's lovely voice on this record – probably because his band is super-hip, and includes players like Jaki Byard, Joe Farrell, and Rufus Jones. Connor is in fine icy form, as usual – and it's nice to hear her get a bit more jazzy backing than some of the more somber arrangements you'll hear on her Atlantic sessions. Titles include "The Wind", "Send For Me", "Where Do You Go?", and "Deep Song".

One of the deepest soul sets from Esther Phillips' 70s years on Kudu Records – a set with some nicely gritty grooves and a surprisingly earthy feel at times – especially when compared to some of her other albums of the time! Backings are by James Brown's old reedman, Pee Wee Ellis – and although there's some of the usual Kudu electric funk in the mix, there's also some deeper soul elements too – a vibe that's often a bit laidback and open, almost more Atlantic Records at points – which is a mighty good fit for Esther's wonderful voice! As usual for Kudu, the players are an all-star lineup – one that includes Richard Tee on keyboards, George Benson on guitar, Maceo Parker on tenor, and Bernard Purdie and Billy Cobham on drums – and Don Sebesky's also on deck a bit, to sweeten a few tracks up with light strings. The album's got a great version of Bill Withers' "Use Me" that features a tasty break in the intro – and other titles include a great version of "Alone Again (Naturally)", plus the cuts "Let's Move & Groove", "Cherry Red", "Let Me In Your Life", and "You & Me Together".

One of the deepest soul sets from Esther Phillips' 70s years on Kudu Records – a set with some nicely gritty grooves and a surprisingly earthy feel at times – especially when compared to some of her other albums of the time! Backings are by James Brown's old reedman, Pee Wee Ellis – and although there's some of the usual Kudu electric funk in the mix, there's also some deeper soul elements too – a vibe that's often a bit laidback and open, almost more Atlantic Records at points – which is a mighty good fit for Esther's wonderful voice! As usual for Kudu, the players are an all-star lineup – one that includes Richard Tee on keyboards, George Benson on guitar, Maceo Parker on tenor, and Bernard Purdie and Billy Cobham on drums – and Don Sebesky's also on deck a bit, to sweeten a few tracks up with light strings. The album's got a great version of Bill Withers' "Use Me" that features a tasty break in the intro – and other titles include a great version of "Alone Again (Naturally)", plus the cuts "Let's Move & Groove", "Cherry Red", "Let Me In Your Life", and "You & Me Together".