Vocalists — All Formats  

The debut album from Pier Angeli – equally known for her acting ability as well as her singing – and working here in a swinging late 50s American take on the sound of Italian pop! Pier was married to singer Vic Damone, and while his style's perhaps a bit fuller and more emotive than hers, there's a good degree of comparison – as Pier's working here to please the imagined Italy of the American audiences in the years when things settled down after World War 2 – singing in Italian throughout to a nice set of backings from Hugo & Luigi. Most of the album's in a lush, romantic mode that's in keeping with other Roulette vocal sessions of the late 50s – save for the fact that the language is Italian, not English! Titles include "Volare", "Anema E Core", "Nu Quarto E Luna", "Torero", "Arrividerci Roma", and "Suvenir D'Italie".

Classic work by one of our favorite pop singers ever – the full-voiced Cilla Black, a vocalist we'd trade for Petula Clark or Dusty Springfield in a minute! During the 60s, Cilla was working in a strongly Bacharach-influenced mode – a style that picked up a lot of uptown touches from the New York scene, but which infused them with the more belting mode of Brit female singers of the time. The result is an incredibly powerful approach to pop – one that showcases Cilla's incredible voice, but which also has her wrapped up in beautifully full arrangements, and rhythms that often have that slightly syncopated gentle groove that we love from Bacharach's work with pop singers. CD features 25 tracks in all – including 6 making their CD debut – titles that include "Yo Yo", "A Man & A Woman", "Anyone Who Had A Heart", "You're My World", "Love Letters", "One Little Voice", "Alfie", "Baby I'm Yours", "A Lover's Concerto", "Step Inside Love", "Liverpool Lullaby", "Forget Him", "Little Pleasure Acre", and "Rule Britannia".

On Sophisticated Lady, Julie London's got her hair up, and is wearing a classy gown – so you can bet that the feel of the record definitely follows through with the "sophisticated" promise of the title! Things are as mellow as on London's early classics for Liberty, but there's a bit more of an orchestrated feel too – fuller backings that couch her lovely vocals in a near-perfect array of strings – usually quite gentle, and often breaking away to give Julie that personal, solitary space that usually has her singing at her best. Titles include "Make It Another Old Fashioned Please", "Sophisticated Lady", "Remind Me", "You're Blase", "Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most", and "Absent Minded Me". For The Night People is mature, mellow, and totally wonderful – clear proof that Julie London was still making great music well into the 60s! The album's got a simple, unassuming charm – very much in the late nite mode you'd guess from the title, with spare backings from Don Bagley that often have a key guitar line in the mix – working along with London's vocals in the same style as the mid 50s – but with a different feel overall – a bit more mature and world-wise, which makes for a perfect fit for tunes that include "I Got It Bad", "Here's That Rainy Day", "Am I Blue", "I'll Never Smile Again", "Can't Get Out Of This Mood", and "When The Sun Comes Out".

A sweet rarity from the lovely Mina – a great replica of one of her best singles from the early 70s – featuring the kind of amazing vocals that have always made her work unlike anyone else!

Dreamy pop from Italian diva Mina – sweetly soaring strings and groovy 60s pop touches – horns, galloping percussion and other upbeat touches on a few tracks, though a few more are piano and voice centered numbers with a touch of melancholy! The album features great arrangements by Mario Robbiani, Pino Presti, Augusto Martelli, and GP Reverberi – and the overall feeling is a bit easier than some of Mina's more work. It's got dreamy ballads sung in both English and Italian. Lovely stuff from wonderful singer! Titles include "Sentimentale", "Alfie", "Something", "Capiro", "Le Farfalle Nella Notte", "Amor Mio", "Mi Fai Sentire Cosi Strana" and more.

A great look at the lesser-known side of the career of UK vocalist Matt Monro – one that features rare EMI singles, obscure album tracks, and other usual bits all pulled together in one overstuffed 2CD set! The package is a great antidote to all of the overdone hits collections of Monro's work on the market – and it really gets at the subtle brilliance of his work – that dark-voiced style that was a true precursor to the sound of Scott Walker and others to come in UK pop at the end of the 60s. And even though we're big fans of Matt, there's plenty here we'd never heard before – but that's to be expected with a total of 51 tracks that include "When I Look Into Your Eyes", "The Lady Smiles", "Love Song", "Other People", "Mirage", "All Of A Sudden", "When Love Comes Along", "It's That Time Again", "Only Friends", "So Little Time", "Nothing To Lose", "Lover's Caravan", "All That Remains", "Sitting On Top Of The World", "Till", "I've So Much To Be Thankful For", and even a medley of Matt's famous commercial work!

An amazing document of righteous soul jazz – the full recordings for Horace Silver's United States Of Mind trilogy – done in collaboration with singers Andy and Salome Bey! The sound is completely different from Silver's work of the 60s – very righteous and message-oriented, with lyrics that often express social and political issues of the time – but which are delivered by the singers in a hip style that takes them far beyond their era – so much so, in fact, that all three albums are really only being appreciated to their fullest years later! Most of the recordings feature smaller combo instrumentation from groups that have Silver playing mostly electric piano – alongside musicians that include Randy Brecker, George Coleman, Houston Person, Idris Muhammad, Harold Vick, and Cecil Bridgewater – and overall, the tunes almost feel more like work that would have been issued on the Strata East label, instead of the usual Blue Note grooves of the time. Wonderful to have back out again – especially in this complete version, which features 28 tracks on 2CDs! Titles include "Big Business", "The Happy Medium", "Won't You Open Up Your Senses", "Soul Searchin", "All", "From The Heart Through The Mind", "Total Response", "Cause & Effect", "Wipe Away The Evil", and "Peace".

Breathy vocals, jazzy backings, and a beautiful sound from singer Peggy King – an overlooked vocalist from the late 50s, but one who cut some really tremendous albums like this! The session's a great mix of sex and swing – and is proof that handled the right way, a singer like Peggy could really make magic in the studio – a kind of sensual, gentle approach that's not unlike the style of Julie London over at Liberty Records! Backings are by Henri Rene, Pete King, and Jack Marshall – often with strings, but never too lush to overwhelm the dreamy vocals – which themselves are just perfect for the tunes. Titles include "Sure Thing", "Rain", "Lazy Afternoon", "You'll Never Know", "Love Walked In", "Imagination", and "Littleboy Heart".

2 early gems from Shirley Bassey – both albums recorded before her worldwide "Goldfinger" fame, in a mode that's got a lusher, more serious feel! Shirley features arrangements by Geoff Love, and Let's Face The Music has Nelson Riddle at the head of the orchestra – and both of them give Shirley the kind of full backing and rich sound needed to take her voice into some very heady territory! The set features 22 tracks in all, and titles include "Imagination", "All The Things You Are", "Let There Be Love", "All At Once", "For Every Man There's A Woman", "I'm Shooting High", "Hooray For Love", "All Of Me", and "Spring Is Here".

One of the grooviest albums ever recorded – a set that's funky, offbeat, and has way more to offer than most American album of the time! Swedish singer Doris really knocked it out of the park with this one – working with arranger Bert Egerbladh, who gives the set some nicely unusual grooves, often augmented by his own work on organ! The album is famous amongst the break crowd for the track "You Never Come Closer", which has a deep groove and weird fuzzy piano that's been sampled by more than a few folks over the years – but over and above that, the record's an excellent batch of off-beat pop tunes – and it feels like some of the nuttier work that came out on Capitol Records during the late 70s, as evidenced by the Blue Juice/Blue Breaks love of the record in the past decade or two. Tracks include "Did You Give The World Some Love Today Baby", "I'm Pushing You Out", "Beatmaker", "Don't", "Waiting At The Station", "Bath", "You Never Come Closer", and "I Wish I Knew".

One of the grooviest albums ever recorded – a set that's funky, offbeat, and has way more to offer than most American album of the time! Swedish singer Doris really knocked it out of the park with this one – working with arranger Bert Egerbladh, who gives the set some nicely unusual grooves, often augmented by his own work on organ! The album is famous amongst the break crowd for the track "You Never Come Closer", which has a deep groove and weird fuzzy piano that's been sampled by more than a few folks over the years – but over and above that, the record's an excellent batch of off-beat pop tunes – and it feels like some of the nuttier work that came out on Capitol Records during the late 70s, as evidenced by the Blue Juice/Blue Breaks love of the record in the past decade or two. Tracks include "Did You Give The World Some Love Today Baby", "I'm Pushing You Out", "Beatmaker", "Don't", "Waiting At The Station", "Bath", "You Never Come Closer", and "I Wish I Knew". 2CD version features an insane amount of extra material – 20 more tracks recorded with The Plums and The Dandys in 1969, plus the full bonus album Svenssons Doris – all equally groovy stuff! Bonus tracks include "Benny Law", "Why Did You Go", "Let The Sunshine In", "Wouldn't That Be Groovy", "Don't Let It Rain", "What A Lovely Way", "Boom Bang A Bang", and "Karlekens ABC".

Titles include "In Love In Vain", "Never On Sunday", "It Had Better Be Tonight", "A Fine Romance", and "All The Way".

Breezy Brazilian tunes – sung by Italian singer Mina, in a way that recalls some of the best of Elis Regina's work from the late 60s! The track selection is great – and the album features many popular groovers like "Canto De Osshana", "Upa Neguinho", "Que Maravilha", "A Banda", and "Tem Mais Samba". Mina more than lives up to the charm of the tunes – and the album's jazzy arrangements have the same flourish as some of the best work of the time from Brazil!

Groovy work from Lulu – a fab set of British pop tunes that go way past her work on the To Sir With Love soundtrack! If you only know the girl from her work in that film, you'll really dig this set of 2 classic albums – as the style's much more open, and Lulu really emerges here as a hell of a pop talent. The songs run from funky, to groovy, to trippy, and everything in between – and the set's got some really great moments, like the funky break track "Love Loves To Love Love", a cool cover of Nilsson's "Withou Her", and plenty of other great numbers like "Dreary Days & Nights", "Let's Pretend", "Show Me", "Come September", "Where Did You Come From", and "Boom Bang A Bang". The Lulu Album also features great arrangements by Johnny Harris & John Paul Jones!

A sexy gal, stretched out on a couch, with two drinks on the coffee table – that should give you plenty already to guess what this set's about! The album's a killer from late 50s Liberty – sultry vocals from Meg Myles, set to these gently jazzy backdrops from Jimmy Rowles that are equally wonderful too – often with standout solo elements that show he's clearly working with some of his more top-shelf west coast associates. Meg takes it nice and easy throughout – never forcing things, and keeping the proceedings in just the right sort of adult mode to fit the cover image, and the words of the tunes. Titles include "I Wanna Be Loved", "You Took Advantage Of Me", "You Brought A New Kind Of Love To Me", "Paradise", "Last Night On The Back Porch", "It's So Nice To Have A Man Around The House", and "Goodnight Sweetheart".