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Oscar Brown's score for a hip play that he wrote (one of his many plays!) – performed by him, Sivuca, and Jean Pace. Despite the "show" quality of the material, this actually stands simply as a great Oscar Brown Jr. LP, and the production is nice and intimate, and sounds just like an ordinary studio album. Sivuca's great, and his breathy voice and playing really open up Oscar Brown with some great Brazilian touches. And as usual, the writing's great, especially on tracks like "Brown Baby", "Mother Africa's Day", "Funky World", and the great version of "Afro Blue", featuring Oscar's classic lyrics. Also features a wonderful version of Johnny Alf's "Sky & Sea" – done by Sivuca with an incredible lilting groove! LP, Vinyl record album

A sweet little session of 50s vocal jazz – equally great not just for the singing by Joy Byran, but also for the arrangements by pianist Marty Paich! Paich's captured here at a great early point scoring for singers – and he gives Joy the same fluid jazzy approach that he used on the best Bethlehem albums by Mel Torme – a great thing for the singer, as it really makes the album sparkle a bit more than it might on its own. Joy's a pretty decent singer overall – with a range that's surprisingly deep, and a delivery that's best on the lighter, more sprightly tunes on the session – which are the sort that Paich does his best work with. Players include Bob Enevoldsen, Herb Geller, and Jack Sheldon – and titles include "You're My Everything", "My Shining Hour", "Round Midnight", "My Heart Stood Still", "I Could Write A Book", and "What Is There To Say". LP, Vinyl record album

An instant Christmas classic from Samara Joy – a Holiday set that easily matches the strength of her non-seasonal albums from a vocal perspective, but which also brings a fresh sort of energy to the genre as well! The style is mostly jazz, by there's some occasional flourishes that hint at more traditional Christmas modes – balanced nicely throughout, with just the right sort of instrumental shift to make each track really stand out! The record's a short one – only six songs in all – but the quality level is more than enough to keep this one coming out year after year, every December – thanks to tunes that include "Twinkle Twinkle Little Me", "Warm In December", "O Holy Night", "The Christmas Song", "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas", and a bonus live duet on "Christmas Song" with Antonio McLendon. (Holiday Music, Vocalists) CD

An instant Christmas classic from Samara Joy – a Holiday set that easily matches the strength of her non-seasonal albums from a vocal perspective, but which also brings a fresh sort of energy to the genre as well! The style is mostly jazz, by there's some occasional flourishes that hint at more traditional Christmas modes – balanced nicely throughout, with just the right sort of instrumental shift to make each track really stand out! The record's a short one – only six songs in all – but the quality level is more than enough to keep this one coming out year after year, every December – thanks to tunes that include "Twinkle Twinkle Little Me", "Warm In December", "O Holy Night", "The Christmas Song", "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas", and a bonus live duet on "Christmas Song" with Antonio McLendon. (Holiday Music, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

Samara Joy is a rare jazz singer – the sort who manages to have ties to the past, but also really bring so much of her own spirit to the music – not subtle inflections on the tunes, but instead this really personal style that has her absorbing older tracks and turning them into something new – and serving up some great vocal styles of her own! In other words, this isn't a retro-styled record of standard jazz remakes – as Samara's her own sort of singer, right from the start – working with no-nonsense small combo instrumentation that features Pasquale Grasso on guitar, Ben Paterson on piano, and Kenny Washington on drums – on titles that include "Linger Awhile", "Sweet Pumpkin", "Social Call", "Guess Who I Saw Today", "Nostalgia", and "Can't Get Out Of This Mood". CD

Samara Joy is a rare jazz singer – the sort who manages to have ties to the past, but also really bring so much of her own spirit to the music – not subtle inflections on the tunes, but instead this really personal style that has her absorbing older tracks and turning them into something new – and serving up some great vocal styles of her own! In other words, this isn't a retro-styled record of standard jazz remakes – as Samara's her own sort of singer, right from the start – working with no-nonsense small combo instrumentation that features Pasquale Grasso on guitar, Ben Paterson on piano, and Kenny Washington on drums – on titles that include "Linger Awhile", "Sweet Pumpkin", "Social Call", "Guess Who I Saw Today", "Nostalgia", and "Can't Get Out Of This Mood". LP, Vinyl record album

Samara Joy is a rare jazz singer – the sort who manages to have ties to the past, but also really bring so much of her own spirit to the music – not subtle inflections on the tunes, but instead this really personal style that has her absorbing older tracks and turning them into something new – and serving up some great vocal styles of her own! In other words, this isn't a retro-styled record of standard jazz remakes – as Samara's her own sort of singer, right from the start – working with no-nonsense small combo instrumentation that features Pasquale Grasso on guitar, Ben Paterson on piano, and Kenny Washington on drums – on titles that include "Linger Awhile", "Sweet Pumpkin", "Social Call", "Guess Who I Saw Today", "Nostalgia", and "Can't Get Out Of This Mood". LP, Vinyl record album

A great little album from this overlooked singer – an east coast vocalist from the 50s, working here on one of the few sessions she ever recorded! Teal's got an exotic look on the cover, but the presentation of the music is right up there in the best mainstream jazz modes of the time – and unlike some of the other small combo vocal work on Bethlehem in the 50s, this album has the fuller feel of the sorts of records you might hear on a label like Capitol or Verve at the time. Ted Steele handles the arrangements – and is also credited with discovering Teal in Atlantic City – and the backings are a mix of jazzy flourishes and larger strings – never poppy or overdone. Titles include "Autumn Leaves", "El Cumbanchero", "Deed I Do", "For You My Love", "Who's Sorry Now", "Let's Fall In Love", and "Easy To Remember". CD also features three bonus alternate takes! CD

A great illustration of the upbeat, positive vibe that Peggy Lee could serve up when she was at her best – a cool Capitol Records mode that really helped Lee set a whole new tone for singers in the 60s! The great Jack Marshall is at the helm on arrangements – putting things together with a vibe that's bright, but also pretty modern as well – thanks to work from a west coast jazz lineup that includes Shelly Manne on drums, Joe Harnell on piano, Pete Candoli on trumpet, and Barney Kessel on guitar! The set includes Lee's famous version of "Fever" – plus "It's A Wonderful World", "Things Are Swingin'", Alright, Okay, You Win", "Ridin' High", "Alone Together", "Life For Livin'", and"You Don't Know". A classic collaboration between Peggy Lee and Nelson Riddle – and a record that really set the tone for Lee's famous Capitol sides of the 60s! The groove here is very upbeat – as you might guess from the title – with a bouncing, almost syncopated approach that's definitely Riddle's, but which also hints at some of Lee's more soul-based backings of the 60s from Jack Marshall – those slinky-stepping groovers that would really put her back in front of American ears. Many tunes are older numbers, but they're updated nicely by Riddle's playful backings – and cuts include "Jump For Joy", "Back In Your Own Back Yard", "Old Devil Moon", "What A Little Moonlight Can Do", "Just In Time", "Music Music Music", "Four Or Five Times", and "Ain't We Got Fun". CD

(Jazz, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

A later Atlantic Records set from Ray Charles – a record that does a lot more to show off the jazz side of his talents than some of his earlier work! Ray plays piano, and works in a few different small combos – with players who include Joseph Bridgewater and John Hunt on trumpets, David Fathead Newman on alto and tenor, Emmott Dennis on baritone, and Oscar Pettiford on bass. The record features some nice originals – like "Genius After Hours", "Hornful Soul", "Joy Ride", "Dawn Ray", and "Charlesville" – all showing a different side of Ray's talents than you'd know from his singles! (Soul, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

A genius album from the Four Freshmen – one that reinvents their older harmony sound for the Sunshine generation! The album's surprisingly wonderful throughout – and has a liveliness and sense of joy that was missing from some of the group's later Capitol sides. The tunes are mostly contemporary ones – 60s pop numbers done by the group with a snapping, lively, mod kind of approach – in a format that works as well for the group as it did for Mel Torme on his similar sides at the time. But the harmonies are especially amazing here – and the album's almost as if the Freshmen were saying to all the post-Beach Boys groups: "Hey, look, we invented this goshdarn style of singing – and we still do it best, even on tunes you recorded first!" Titles include "Soul Coaxing", "Cherish/Windy", "Walk On By", "Come Fly With Me/Up Up & Away", "Here's To You", "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow", and "Daydream". CD

These guys never miss! For years, we'd always passed up the later work of Jackie & Roy – thinking, in our elitist minds, that only their early work was worth merit. But this session from 1982 proves how wrong we were – as it's a stellar batch of small group tracks – sung in the same sweet mode as their best 50s work! The group's a nice one – with some great vibes by Paul Johnson – and the style has Jackie singing some songs in the lead, others in duet with Roy, and still others in a wonderful wordless mode that we really love. Titles include "Loving You", "I Watch You Sleep", "Too Marvelous For Words", "Am I Blue", "Bidin My Time", "Mine", and "Joy Spring". LP, Vinyl record album

A totally wonderful little record that's every bit as sexy as you might guess from the cover – and which also has some of the groovy French elements you might expect from the title! The set's got this slinky, erotic vibe that's almost in Serge Gainsbourg territory – save for the fact that the tunes are mostly instrumental, and Monica Lassen seems mostly on the set to moan, giggle, and make other expressions of pleasure as the set goes on – a bit like the presence of a woman on a sexy French record at the end of the 60s! The music is very cool, too – somewhere in a space between late 60s European soundtrack modes and bossa nova – with lots of cool organ lines, soulful sax, captivating rhythms, and cool effects that further underscore the sound of the set – on titles that include "Dalliance In Wave", "On Rollin Yacht", "A Lodge Of Joy", "Embrace Ment", "Path For Two", and "Che Vuole Quesat Musica Stasere". LP, Vinyl record album

Peggy Lee's best known as a jazz singer, but this very cool collection emphasizes her work in more pop-based fields of the postwar years – great grooving tracks when Lee was touching on R&B, early rock, and other more upbeat styles! The match of Bear Family presentation and these well-chosen cuts from Peggy's years is really great – and the whole thing really opens up an understanding of the Peggy Lee sound if you only know the singer from more jazz-based albums and recordings of standards. Lee's voice is incredible, and the package does a great job of laying out the strengths and diversity of these recordings – in a set of 30 tracks that include "Jump For Joy", "The Glory Of Love", "Heart", "Johnny Guitar", "Goody Good", "Ghost Riders In The Sky", "My Man", "Uninvited Dream", "I Love Being Here With You", "Sweetheart", "You Deserve", "Fever (live)", "I Got A Man (live)", "Every Night", and "Hallelujah I Love Him So". CD

The beginning of an amazing run on RCA for vocalist Jon Lucien – working here in a sublime blend of styles that's way beyond simple soul or standard jazz! Lucien's got a sound that's unlike anything we can think of – apart from the countless imitators who've tried for his style in recent years – and this initial RCA album is a musical masterpiece that's filled with joy, life, and emotion – all without any of the cliches that such a reference might imply! Arrangements are by Lucien, with some occasional help from Horace Ott and Stanley Rubinstein – all a swirling blend of strings, jazz, and some groovier rhythms at the bottom that have made this record an underground favorite for years. Titles include a killer version of "Who Will Buy", done as a breezy jazz groover, in a way that's made it a classic jazz dance track for years – plus "I Am Now", "How Insensitive", "Love For Sale", and "Dindi" – all given the lush, lovely, swirling, soulful Lucien sound! (Soul, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

Vocalist Rene Marie has been quietly growing her craft for years – really turning into a hell of an artist, with a sound and a style that's a lot fresher than most! Where others might be content to recover familiar ground, Marie's always trying something new – writing great songs of her own, which make up the entire album – and moving to some soulful styles, while still holding onto her roots in jazz – a blend that maybe makes her the female equivalent of Gregory Porter, although Marie's been at it for a few more years! This set's a real reward to anyone who's followed Marie's music – and a great treat for anyone discovering her for the first time – and backing is by a core trio with John Chin on piano – alongside some guest appearances from Romero Lubambo on guitar, Sherman Irby on alto, and Etienne Charles on trumpet. Titles are all original – and include "Lost", "Stronger Than You Think", "Sound Of Red", "If You Were Mine", "Joy Of Jazz", "This Is Not A Protest Song", and "Many Years Ago". CD

An overlooked gem from Carmen – one of her few albums for Columbia from the 60s, and a wonderfully swinging small group session that's got a much more relaxed feel than some of her earlier sets! The album's ostensibly a tribute to Billie Holiday – but it's taken in a way that's completely unlike Holiday's own work – filled with life, joy, and a swinging sensibility that's carried off perfectly by arranger Norman Simmons – who heads up a small combo on piano, working with Walter Perkins on drums, Bob Cranshaw on bass, Nat Adderley on cornet, Eddie Lockjaw Davis on tenor, and Mundell Lowe on guitar. Carmen's vocals are wonderfully groovy – and tunes include "I Cried For You", "Them There Eyes", "My Man", "Strange Fruit", "Miss Brown To You", and "Some Other Spring". LP, Vinyl record album

Soaring grooves and scatting vocals – a wonderful collaboration between this hip fusion combo and singer Rachel Gould, and one that's right up there with the best German grooves of the Glucklich generation! Rachel only sings on a few of the album's tracks, but those sparkle beautifully with a breezy sort of soul that's totally great – and other instrumental titles have a different sort of appeal, but one that's wonderful too – well-played keyboards and guitar, without some of the fusion excesses of the 70s – served up in lean grooves that bring in a great mix of Brazilian and funky jazz styles. The set's got a warmly appealing sound throughout – but not one that's at all like US fusion of the time – still quite adventurous, and really set free to groove in a joyous sort of way! Titles include "Mystic Latin", "Movin Seconds", "Vom Regen Bogen", "Short Funky", "Congress Of Dreams", "Cyklus III", and "Anticipated Joy". (Jazz, Vocalists) LP, Vinyl record album

A really unique take on the music of jazz legend Tadd Dameron – a set that focuses entirely on vocal versions of his compositions – a side of Dameron's legacy that's sometimes overlooked! Tadd wasn't that much of a lyricist himself – although he did do two of the songs here – while others are written by Irving Reid, Bernie Hanighen, and Jack Reynolds – all with a mix of lyrics that really fit the famous modern idiom in Dameron's music – delivered instrumentally by a core combo that features Gary Smulyan on plenty of strong baritone sax solos, with Pete Malinverni on piano, David Wong on bass, and Matt Wilson on drums. Anais Reno handles all the vocals – and titles include "Sweet Life", "Never Been In Love", "Whatever Possessed Med", "Weekend", "Lovely One In The Window", and "You're A Joy". (Jazz, Vocalists) CD

That title exclamation's an apt one – as the album's one of the first few from the great Dusty Springfield – whose sense of soul is already a thing of joy! The record bursts out with a punch-packing power that really rises Dusty up from her contemporaries – no tears jerked too long, no overdone humility – and instead this subtle energy that has her completely in control, even when opening up on more emotive lyrics – polished in the right ways, but never in the too-bright styles that UK pop was trapped in a few years before. The whole thing's years before Springfield recorded over on these shores, but you can already hear that direction – on titles that include "Once Upon A Time", "You Don't Own Me", "Now That You're My Baby", "If Wishes Could Be Kisses", "I Wanna Make You Happy", "Your Hurtin Kind Of Love", and "I Want Your Love Tonight". LP, Vinyl record album

A key pairing of vocalist Mel Torme and pianist George Shearing – two aging jazz artists who really helped re-ignite each others' careers in the 80s! The format here takes Torme back to the best years of his jazz roots – and features spare backing from Shearing's trio, at a level that's intimate, but never too sleepy or prone with cliche. Shearing's touch on the keys is wonderfully sensitive – never just standard backing to a singer – and in a way, he brings out a new sense of depth in Torme's vocals, one that never showed itself so strongly, or so personally in the past. And best of all, at the time of this recording, the duo haven't yet lapsed into the cliches that would later mar their pairing – and instead really work together beautifully in a fresh sense of discovery and joy in each others' company. Titles include "The Midnight Sun", "Someday I'll Find You", "Whisper Not/Love Me Or Leave Me", "Since I Fell For You", "Out Of This World", and "Little Man You've Got The Blues". LP, Vinyl record album

Sarah Vaughan definitely earns her divine nickname here – singing sublimely here in a warmly jazzy setting from her early years at Roulette Records! The style's a nice extension of Vaughan's best sides at Mercury – and is almost a nice back-to-basics approach, the kind of reminder that Sarah always sounds best when she's heard at her jazziest – as on this album, with arrangements and piano from Jimmy Jones, and some great trumpet lines from Harry Edison! The sound is often nicely spare and laidback – letting Vaughan's vocals really come up strongly in the mix, and flow with a tremendously natural, but creatively dynamic style that really leaves us breathless. Titles include "Have You Met Miss Jones", "Somebody Else's Dream", "What Do You See In Her", "Jump For Joy", "Ain't No Use", "I'm Gonna Laugh You Out Of My Life", and "When Your Lover Has Gone". LP, Vinyl record album