Vocalists — Recently Added

Very obscure record made by the enigmatic Leo Gooden, a politician and night club owner from East St. Louis who made a few records on his own tiny LG label. Gooden's an interesting guy – probably more interesting than he is musically capable – and we're always amazed at the people he ... LP, Vinyl record album

A unique moment from the legendary Jimmy Scott – a one-off album cut for Atlantic Records – recorded after his initial 50s fame, and decades before he'd finally get his due, much later in his life! The album's got a style that's a bit more mature than Scott's initial sides – a ... LP, Vinyl record album

An oft-overlooked jazz vocal session by Mary Ann McCall, with superb arrangements by Johnny Richards, and a nice batch of tracks that have a surprisingly dark quality to them. Titles inlcude "Blue (and Broken Hearted)", "Lover Is Blue", "Melancholy Nights", "Am I ... LP, Vinyl record album

Jackie & Roy are definitely getting bit wilder here – hitting an electric early 70s CTI mode, and really growing a lot in the process! The session has the vocal pair working with CTI players who include Hubert Laws on flute, Joe Farrell on saxes, Roy Pennington on vibes, and Steve Gadd ... LP, Vinyl record album

One of the few rare albums cut by Chicago soul jazz singer Jean DuShon, an artist that Chess really tried to push in the mid 60s, but who never really seemed to make it. This one's a nice set of intimate jazz vocal tracks, sung with the Herman Foster trio, and covering a range of material from ... LP, Vinyl record album

A much groovier set than usual from vocalist Jimmy Witherspoon – thanks to some great backing from the combo of organist Jack McDuff, which also includes guitar from a young Melvin Sparks! The sound here is definitely in keeping with the "blues" in the title – but McDuff's ... LP, Vinyl record album

Moody set of vocals recorded by this obscure Chicago singer. Lurlean got her start at the classy south side Club DeLisa, home to Sun Ra, and a host of other Chicago talents – but by the time of this recording, she'd moved downtown, and had become a classy smoky voiced singer with a good ... LP, Vinyl record album

Mary Ann McCall never cut very many records in the 50s – but all of them are pretty darn great, and this one's no exception! The set's a great balance of mainstream swing vocals and slightly more soulful arrangements – penned and led here by Ernie Wilkins, and played by a group that ... LP, Vinyl record album

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 ... LP, Vinyl record album

One of the first albums ever by this legendary jazz vocal group! LHR do the incredible – and create a set of vocal renditions of standards by the Basie band, putting jazzy lyrics in to replace the instrumental solos, but keeping the same vibe as the original tracks. The sound and approach ... LP, Vinyl record album

Beautiful Billie from the last years of her life. The material was recorded in 1956 and 1957 in Hollywood, featuring Barney Kessel, Ben Wesbster, Harry Edison, and Jimmy Rowles – all grooving nicely in small group formation. The tracks have a wonderfully fragile quality – and although ... LP, Vinyl record album

Very cool work from Anita O'Day – a session cut with Jimmy Giuffre arrangements, in a style that's a bit different than some of her other 50s work for Verve! Jimmy brings a nice touch of modernism to the record – casting the horns in ways that show his own love of creative colors and ... LP, Vinyl record album

Nice obscure set of blues material recorded for United Artists – featuring the little-known Big Miller performing a set of 11 compositions from the pen of Langston Hughes. The backing on here is similar to that of a Jimmy Rushing album from the same time – as it includes arrangements ... LP, Vinyl record album

An amazing moment for singer Dianne Reeves – the first in a long line of excellent records for the Blue Note label – and a wonderfully tight blend of jazz and soul, put together at a level that instantly pushed Reeves into the territory of previous giants like Phyllis Hyman and Marlena ... LP, Vinyl record album

An obscure bit of Chicago jazz – featuring vocalist Luba Raushiek, kind of a self-styled spiritualist, with an approach that hits both traditional modes, and more far-out soulful ones – running through styles that range from Leon Thomas to Billy Eckstine, as was typical for a small club ... LP, Vinyl record album

One of Billie's last sessions – recorded with beautiful large backings by Ray Ellis, and a heartbreaking tone that may not show Billie as strong technically as on some of her earlier albums, but which is pretty darn compelling nonetheless. Titles include "All The Way", "Don't ... LP, Vinyl record album

Great Atlantic work from Mose – cut in the early years of his rediscovery by the hippie crowd, but with a tight small combo mode that recalls his classic 50s recordings for Prestige! The group on the set's a trio – with Mose on piano and vocals, Red Mitchell on bass, and Bill Goodwin ... LP, Vinyl record album

Excellent small group jazz work from Dinah – of the sort that's often quite tough to find on vinyl, and which represents some of her best work of all time! The album's got a good group of Mercury jazz players – like Clark Terry, Paul Quinichette, Cecil Payne, Wynton Kelly, and Jimmy ... LP, Vinyl record album

Mel Torme takes on the sound of Broadway at the start of the 60s – but he does so in a very groovy way, thanks to hip backings from the amazing Marty Paich! The style here is as swinging and jazzy as the work that Mel and Marty cut together on the Bethlehem label in the late 50s – and ... LP, Vinyl record album

An excellent album of vocals by the great Joe Williams! Joe's always been a fine singer, but with Basie, he really gets the backing he needs to do his work the best. And although this album isn't as authenico as it might be, it still comes from a time when Verve really knew how to handle singers ... LP, Vinyl record album

At the time of this album, Johnny Hartman definitely was the voice that is – a singer with a new level of maturity for the 60s, and a voice that's far more masculine than the geeky look of the photo on the cover! Hartman's sound here is smooth and warm, but never in a too-commercial way ... LP, Vinyl record album

Although Lambert, Hendricks, & Ross started out their career singing vocalese versions of Basie tunes, they do a pretty darn great job here with Ellington – in fact, maybe even better, given the sophistication of the tracks. And while the album lacks some of the whimsy of the wonderful ... LP, Vinyl record album

One of Vaughan's nice jazz sides from the 50s on EmArcy, but cut with slightly larger backing, almost in the vein of some here concurrent pop oriented work at the Mercury parent label during the same time. Arrangements are by Hal Mooney, and Vaughan takes an approach that showcases how she ... LP, Vinyl record album

One of the greatest, straightest sets from Mel Torme – an all-classic batch of tracks that's quite different than his other album for Columbia! Torme checks in as a totally committed, totally serious jazz vocalist here – with an impeccable approach to the music that puts this album ... LP, Vinyl record album

Sultry vocals from Sallie Blair – one of the hipper singers of her generation, and an artist with a sound that's unlike anyone else we can think of! Blair's a bit bluesy, a bit soulful, but ultimately a jazz singer at heart – and her already-cool style gets some sweet extra help on ... LP, Vinyl record album

An excellent little album from British vocalist Georgie Fame – one that has him moving way past the simple beat group sound of his roots, into a sophisticated style that mixes jazz vocalizing, hard grooving, and lots of rock/R&B influences! Georgie's still got his Mose Allison-inspired ... LP, Vinyl record album

One of the best early albums by vocalist Mark Murphy – cut to arrangements by Bill Holman on side one, a set of big band numbers, and to smaller piano trio backing on side two, which features mellower stuff. Murphy's really developing his voice at this point, and is starting to get some of ... LP, Vinyl record album

Could anyone ever utter a sexier line than "Don't go to strangers, come to me?" We think not, and it's material like that that makes the album a real killer from Etta Jones – one of her best from the 60s, cut when she was really developing her skills as a vocalist, but still had ... LP, Vinyl record album

A classic 60s set from Dusty Springfield – an album recorded quite early in her career, but which already showed a mature singer who was years ahead of the sound she had while part of the Springfields folk trio a few short years before! This Dusty is all-soul, all-woman right from the start ... CD

A sparkling set of early work from the great Dusty Springfield – one of those fantastic records in which the singer almost seems to be working in a style that's equal parts soul and pop, even in the years before she recorded in Memphis and Muscle Shoals! There's a strong influence here from ... CD