Vocalists — CDs  

Incredible early work from Lorez Alexandria – the kind of albums that instantly set her apart from other singers of the 50s, reissued here properly for the first time in years! On This Is Lorez, the singer is working with sublime small combo backings from the group of pianist King Fleming – an unusual Chicago ensemble that includes Wilber Wynn on guitar, Ronald Wilson on flute and oboe, Vernel Fournier on drums, and Audrey Jones on bongos – a musical lineup that brings in a different sort of sophistication to the record, shading tunes with moody colors on flute and oboe that perfectly support Alexandria's soulful and sensitive interpretations of the tunes. The whole thing is pure genius, and a key look at the new levels of sophistication that were bubbling everywhere on the Chicago scene during the years of Jamal and Sun Ra. Lorez Sings Pres follows in a very similar mode – with backing by a Chicago group that again includes King Fleming piano, plus Charles Stepney on vibes, Paul Serrano on trumpet, and Vernel Fournier on drums – an extremely hip lineup that makes the record far more than just the Lester Young tribute promised in the title! But despite the instrumentalists, the real star on all sides is Alexandria – who sings with dark tones and deep colors that go far beyond conventional jazz vocals – all carried off with that slightly breathy mode that was one more unique aspect of her work! CD features all tracks from both albums – a total of 22 titles that include "Snowstorm", "I'm Glad There Is You", "The Sky Is Crying", "I'm Making Believe", "Necessity", "Penthouse Serenade", "DB Blues", "This Year's Kisses", "Easy Living", "No Eyes Blues", "Jumping With Symphony Sid", and a key early reading of "Baltimore Oriole".

An incredible live recording by Burt Bacharach – and one that wasn't issued in the US! This early 70s concert is great proof that the Bacharach magic didn't come from any studio tricks – but from the genius of Burt himself – as the maestro's working here in a fantastic larger-than-life setting, one that offers slightly different takes on the magical tunes of his A&M years. The arrangements include a large instrumental group, plus strings and uncredited singers – and Burt himself delivers some wonderful vocals on a few tunes too. Titles include "Promises Promises", "The Look Of Love", "Walk On By", "Come Touch The Sun", "Bond Street", "Close To You", "A House Is Not A Home", and 2 nice medley tracks!

One of the coolest albums ever from vocalist Sathima Bea Benjamin – and a set that really shows her strong ties to the South African jazz scene of the 70s! The album was done in close collaboration with husband Dollar Brand – who turns in some sublime arrangements for the record, which stand as some of his greatest music of the time – tracks that stretch out and reach forth with a sense of soul and spirit that goes way beyond the usual – and which also really set fire to Benjamin's vocals as well! The tunes all feature original lyrics by Sathima, and have this powerful, righteous quality that we've hardly ever heard expressed this well on other records – and instrumentation features work by a great lineup that includes Billy Brooks on trumpet, Basil Coetzee on flute and tenor, Louis Spears on bass, and Dollar Brand himself on piano. Titles include the very long classic "Africa" – plus "Music" and "African Songbird".

A double-length set from Mario Biondi – and a record that really shows him growing a lot as a singer! Biondi's still got all the raspy charm we loved in his work for Schema Records, but he also seems to have a deeper sense of soul here too – especially on the ballads and mellower cuts, which really help expand the palette past the snapping jazzy grooves we've always loved in Mario's music – and which could honestly have him hitting the heights of some of the best American singers from years back. The blend of soul and jazz in the vocals is wonderful – and instrumentation is mostly jazzy, with that sense of groove that works perfectly with Biondi's approach. The "due" in the title refers to the fact that Mario's got a key partner on every track – either a special Italian jazz musician, or guest singer – and titles include "Won't You Come Back", "Under That Sky", "Mother Earth", "Where Are You", "Every Time I Think Of You", "Dreaming", "Free", "What's Happening Brother", and "In The Sun".

A groovy bossa gem from the glory days of A&M Records – an ultra-hip group recorded with production by Sergio Mendes! The feel here is a lot like that of Brasil 66 – bossa rhythms, sunny CA instrumentation, and lovely female vocals – in this case sung singularly, by the lovely Gracinha Leporace – aka Mrs Mendes! Instrumentation is arguably even better than on Brasil 66 records – with wonderfully groovy organ lines from Manfredo Fest, who plays Lowrey organ instead of the usual Hammond. A really essential slice of bossa nova – and a record we'd never part with! Filled with wonderful tunes that include "Gentle Rain", "Up Up & Away", "Wave", "Do You Know The Way To San Jose", "Cacao do Sal", "Veleiro", "Saiupa", and "Nana".

Really beautiful vocal work from Corinne Chatel – spare tunes that mostly feature overdubbed vocal passages, sung wordlessly, often with a very musical feel – yet one that's quite offbeat too! There's a quality here that really reminds us of some of our favorite Meredith Monk work from years back – really imaginative, and never gimmicky at all – with an approach that's very abstract, yet somehow all makes complete sense too – logic that's all its own, yet really beautiful overall! Titles include "Call", "Les Sirenes", "Heartbeats", "Berceuse", "Angels Vocalizing", "Awakening The Goddess", and "South India".

That's "gone" – as in the way June Christy really sends us – vocals that take us to a place that few other 50s singers could ever hope to reach! June's work here is a masterpiece of melancholic understatement – far less overblown than some of her pop contemporaries, but also filled with feeling in a way that's different from some of the other icy singers of the time. A big part of the album's strength lies with arranger Pete Rugolo – who gives June here some of the same dark corners and modern elements you'd find in her classic Something Cool album – which really hits the right sort of emotion for Christy. Titles include "When The Sun Comes Out", "It's So Peaceful In the Country", "When You Awake", "Lazy Mood", and "Interlude".

Quite an unusual date for vocalist Jimmy Witherspoon – one that has him singing with the group of Wilbur De Paris, in a mode that's a lot more trad than any of Jimmy's other records from the time! Turns out, that amazing voice is perfect for the setting – and Witherspoon really sounds wonderful here – ringing out with a full, rich style that most other trad male singers would never attempt – recorded beautifully for the session with top-shelf Atlantic fidelity, too – and more than a few echoes of their R&B approach in the studio! The group features Wilbur De Paris on trombone, Sidney De Paris on cornet, Omer Simeon on clarinet, and Sonny White on piano – and titles include "Careless Love", "Trouble In Mind", "Lotus Blossom", "Big Fine Girl", "Good Rollin Blues", and "When The Sun Goes Down".

Jackie DeShannon serves up some wonderful renditions of popular tunes from the 50s and 60s – stepping aside from her usual role as songwriter, and singing sweetly to some great arrangements from George Tipton! The style is somewhere between 60s pop and more sophisticated vocals – often sharing the best elements of both at the time, and offering a side of Jackie's talents that isn't often captured this way on record. The song choices are especially nice – making the record way more than just a "filler" set – and titles include "If You Gotta Make A Fool Of Somebody", "Are We Dancing", "Everything Under The Sun", "Merry Go Round In The Rain", "No Easy Way Down", "Dream", "Don't Dream Of Anybody But Me", and "It's All In The Game". CD adds 9 more tracks from the album New Image – a similar set of standards and covers with arrangements by Marty Paich – and a set of titles that includes "A Proper Girl", "Sunday Kind Of Love", "The Carnival Is Closed Today", "I'll Be Seeing You", "That's The Name Of The Game", and "Poor Someone".

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".

A huge collection of work from the great Tommy Edwards – a set that features four full albums' worth of material, and which stands as a rich testament of Edwards' contributions to American music at the end of the 50s! Tommy has a unique approach on these tracks – a style that's rooted in older jazz vocal modes, especially given his poise and class – but which also has some pop production too – in ways that arguably make Edwards a key figure in the development of early soul music! You'll definitely hear a key criss-crossing of modes on these tracks – heartfelt vocals mixed with captivating production – and the package features a whopping 57 tracks in all – material from albums that includes For Young Lovers, It's All In The Game, Step Out Singing, and You Started Me Dreaming – with titles that include "Music Maestro Please", "Please Mr Sun", "My Sugar My Sweet", "It's All In The Game", "You Win Again", "Always", "Until The Real Thing Comes Along", "The Composer", "Should I", "Suzie Wong", as You Desire Me", and "Once There Lived A Fool".

Plenty of crazy rhythms here – as singers Chiemi Eri and Carl Jones are joined by Japanese jazzmen who include Nobuo Hara & His Sharps & Flats, saxophonists Sadao Watanabe and Sleepy Matsumoto, guitarist Shungo Sawada, and the Hideo Shiraki Quintet! The backings on all tracks are superb – and elevate the already-great team of Eri and Jones to a wonderful new level – one that easily matches some of the hippest vocal jazz sessions cut in the US during the same period, especially some of the more inventive albums on the soul jazz side of the spectrum. Titles include "The Big Twister", "My Funny Valentine", "Just Squeeze Me", "Love Is Here To Stay", "I Get A Kick Out Of You", and "Midnight Sun Will Never Set".

Sunny wonderfulness from one of the grooviest vocal groups of all time! This is Free Design's legendary album for children – referred to in the title as "very important people" – and it's a strangely hip set of tracks designed to get the kids to open up in a groovy late 60s kind of way. Given that the Free Design always sounded like a bunch of hippy kids, the setting is perfect for them – and they dreamily make their way through a great set of nearly all original tracks that sparkle with an innocent charm that's slyly deeper than you'd guess from the kid-orientation of the set! Original titles include "Love You", "Kites Are Fun", "Daniel Dolphin", "Ronda 'Go Round", "Bubbles", "Little Cowboy", and "Scarlet Tree". CD features 2 bonus tracks – both outtakes from "For The Love Of Your Lips", a Chapstick commercial!

A rare American session from the Quarteto Em Cy – working here under the name of The Girls From Bahia, and singing in English as well as Portuguese! The album's got a sound that's quite similar to the group's classic 60s Brazilian records on Elenco – thanks to bossa-heavy backings from Oscar Castro Neves – and even when singing in a second language, the girls do a really great job of hitting the sweetest, warmest harmony notes they can – that trademark vocal brilliance that made them such a huge act back in Brazil! Sonny Burke produced, but he clearly gives plenty of space to Oscar – as the album's got little of his usual Warner touches – and instead shows that when you've got the right talent in the studio, you can do a pretty good job of recording bossa in the US. Titles include "Berimbau", "Tem Mais Samba", "Edmundo (In The Mood)", "Lai Ladaia", Morrer De Amor", "Sunny Side Of The Street", "Road To Nowhere", "Old Piano Roll Blues", "The Day It Rained", "E Nada Mais", "Manhattan", "Dindi", and "A Banda (Parade)".

A long-overdue album from UK soul singer Jaki Graham – a vocalist who seems to have gotten better and better over the years! As you might guess from the title, a fair bit of tracks on the set are older standards – sung by Jaki in a jazzified approach to soul, with elements that are even warmer and more classic than her older recordings – almost a nod back to the generation of R&B before she got her start! The album's way stronger than we might have expected, and Graham's vocals are still right on the top of their mark – as you'll hear on cuts that include "God Bless The Heartache", "For Sentimental Reasons", "Summertime", "Unforgettable", "My Funny Valentine", and "Lover Man".

Two excellent early albums from Shirley Horn – back to back on a single CD! Travelin Light is one of the greatest jazz vocal albums of the 60s, and probably the greatest album ever by Shirley Horn! The session's got a beautiful lively sound, with extremely interesting arrangements by Johnny Pate, and a flute/piano/guitar sound that works perfectly with Shirley's lovely voice. The material is a great mix of lesser-known songs, sung with a maturity and honesty that will make your heart break. We love this one way better than any of Shirley's recent albums, and we can't recommend it highly enough! Titles include "Sunday In New York", "Yes, I Know When I've Had It", "Someone You've Loved", "I Could Have Told You", "Travelin Light", and "Don't Be On The Outside". Horn Of Plenty is hip stuff from Shirley Horn – very mature and swinging jazz! The set features the sharp early vocals of Shirley Horn nicely set up with some larger backings – hip arrangements handled by Quincy Jones, Thad Jones, and Billy Byers – with all the groovy 60s punch you can imagine from a lineup like that! And although Horn later became well known for some gentler, mellower cuts, we're huge fans of her singing like this – which has a righteous power that really tops some of the vocalists from the previous generation. Titles include "Wee Small Hours", "That Old Black Magic", "The Great City", "On The Street Where You Live", and "Let Me Love You".

A pretty darn amazing album from Thelma Houston – recorded during the zenith of Jimmy Webb's career, when Jimmy was not only one of the hippest songwriters in pop, but also kind of a mini-Burt Bacharach, writing, arranging, and conducting albums for a variety of stars. This little gem features Thelma fronting a set of 11 original tunes by Jimmy – arranged with a hip pop sophistication that few other talents of his time could match – soul and strings coming together in a wonderful swirl that makes for one of Thelma's most compelling records. Titles include "Mixed Up Girl", "This Is Where I Came In", "Pocketful Of Keys", "Cheap Lovin", "This Is Your Life", "If This Was The Last Song", and "Sunshower".

A pretty darn amazing album from Thelma Houston – recorded during the zenith of Jimmy Webb's career, when Jimmy was not only one of the hippest songwriters in pop, but also kind of a mini-Burt Bacharach, writing, arranging, and conducting albums for a variety of stars. This little gem features Thelma fronting a set of 11 original tunes by Jimmy – arranged with a hip pop sophistication that few other talents of his time could match – soul and strings coming together in a wonderful swirl that makes for one of Thelma's most compelling records. Titles include "Crazy Mixed Up Girl", "This Is Where I Came In", "Pocketful Of Keys", "Cheap Lovin", "This Is Your Life", "If This Was The Last Song", and "Sunshower". This version includes a handful of bonus tracks released as singles for ABC Dunhill in 1970 including a sweet version of Laura Nyro's "Save The Country", plus "I Just Can't Stay Away", "I Just Gotta Be Me", "Crying In The Sunshine", "(The) Good Earth" and "Ride, Louis, Ride".

One of the greatest records we've heard from Al Jarreau in years – a set that features his incredible vocals backed by the Metropol Orkest – a large ensemble who help the legendary singer find a whole new sort of groove! The bold backings are really wonderful – full and flowing, with loads of warm jazz energy that seems to push Al's vocals even more than before – giving them a force that's hardly what you might expect from the aging Jarreau, and really helping to recover that jazzy core that's always made his singing so special. Many of the tunes here are older numbers, but really given an unusual twist in the process – overflowing with a live, ebullient quality that comes through from the very first note. Titles include "Flame", "Agua De Beber", "Cold Duck", "Jacaranda Bougainvillea", "We're In This Love Together", "Midnight Sun", "Something That You Said", "After All", "Spain", and "Scootcha Booty".

Lovely work from Kimiko Kasai – easily one of the best female jazz vocalists on the Japanese scene in the 70s! Kimiko's got a wonderfully deep range – an ability to dip into lower notes when needed, but not in any sort of gimmicky way – just this full-voiced quality that makes her interpretation of American standards come across with a really rich groove! Backing is by a piano trio, and Kasai's right out front in the arrangements – on titles that include "The Good Life", "Get Out Of Town", "Bewitched", "Just In Time", "Wild Is The Wind", and "Sunny".

Sublime ballad work from Dutch vocalist Ann Burton – sung with near-invisible accompaniment from the Louis Van Dyke trio! Van Dyke's got an especially tender touch on the keys – one that hangs in air with great space between the notes – a mode that's simply perfect for Ann's ethereal way of putting over a tune! Tracks are mostly familiar standards, but they've got a fragile approach here that makes them sound especially fresh – and a few tracks feature some especially nice tenor sax work from Rudy Brink. Titles include "Someone To Watch Over Me", "A Lovely Way To Spend An Evening", "It Never Entered My Mind", "The Shadow Of Your Smile", "Here's That Rainy Day", and "That Ole Devil Called Love".

A beautifully gentle album from vocalist Ann Burton – recorded with sublime accompaniment from the trio of pianist Louis Van Dyke, a fragile and spare talent on the keys – and a perfect match for Burton on the mood of the album! Ann's vocals really come across with the mature grace that's always made us love her so much – and overall, the session's got a strength that goes far beyond most of her indie albums from later years. Most tunes are extremely spare – with bass stepping out first behind Ann's vocals, as Louis' piano lines sneak in with just a few quiet lines that slowly grow as the tune progresses – all in a style that's neither a cliche of older torch, nor the too-adult mode of more pop jazz vocal albums of the time. Piet Noordjik plays alto sax on a few of the tunes on the set – and titles include "You've Changed", "The Good Life", "Go Away Little Boy", "It's Easy To Remember", "But Not For Me", "He Was Too Good To Me", and "Sunny".

A great album of soulful jazzy tracks from Japanese singer Kimiko Kasai – with keyboards from Herbie Hancock and Webster Lewis – incredible and unjustly overlooked! Kimiko sings in English, and the record's got a nice smooth fusion groove with funky moments, post Headhunters. It's almost in the mode of Herbie's work for the US in the late 70s, but truth be told, we like this better! It features some great versions of Herbie Hancock tunes – including "Maiden Voyage", "Sunlight", "Butterfly", "Tell Me A Bedtime Story", and "Harvest Time" – and it's also got a nice version of Stevie Wonder's "As", plus "Head In The Clouds" and the funk steeped opener "I Thought It Was You".

There weren't many vocal albums on the Mainstream label during the early 70s, and this rare soul side is a real overlooked gem! Alice Clark has a rich soulful voice, with a style that sounds a bit like Esther Marrow, mixed with some of the lead vocalists in Voices Of East Harlem – a really right-on sort of sound that's totally great, and way hipper than most 70s chart soul! Arrangements are by Ernie Wilkins, who brings in a touch of jazz – but again, with a much hipper feel than most of his other backings – and most of the tracks are quite obscure, well-written tunes – of the sort of material you might expect to hear sung by Gil Scott-Heron or Donny Hathaway. Titles include "Never Did I Stop Loving You", "Looking At Life", "Charms Of The Arms Of Love", "Don't You Care", and "Hey Girl".