"Dinah and Verve (record company) both hit a homerun with this great 2-CD "sampler". If all samplers were this good. Practically every phase in Dinah's brilliant singing career is covered in this 2-fer, from her early start in Lionel Hampton's band with "Evil Gal Blues" "Slick Chick...." in 1943 to her memorable departure from Mercury (Verve) in late 1961 with the pop hits "Unforgettable" "What a Difference..". Every stylistic and musical approach in on full display here: violin-strings, big band orchestras, trios, or just a piano and the lady herself, Miss D. I really can't think of any major song Dinah did that the record company left out, every one of her groundbreaking singles are here."
Essential Music
Marc D. Thomas | Moab, UT United States | 04/28/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"In my humble opinion, Dinah Washington was the greatest American female singer ever and this is the best place to sample her wares. She could sing it all in a crystal clear voice, whether it was blues, jazz, pop, standards, or rock & roll.This two-CD retrospective does a marvelous job in covering the highlights from her years with the Mercury label, and unless you're wealthy enough or fanatic enough to buy the "Complete Mercury Recordings" collection of Dinah, here is the essential recording to have."
Dinah, Dinah and more Dinah!
Marc D. Thomas | 01/11/1999
(4 out of 5 stars)
"If you love Dinah (and I know you do) this would be the one CD to get to fill out your Dinah collection. The jazzy Dinah is represented here along with the "bluesy" Dinah. What "a difference a complete compilation makes, it made my day."
You know damn well I can't read!
Johnny Heering | Bethel, CT United States | 08/30/2007
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Dinah Washington was known as "The Queen of the Blues", but she was also equally adept at singing jazz, R&B and pop. She recorded a lot of music during her relatively short life, and this 2 CD set features 2 and a half hours of some of her best work. There is one unlisted bonus track at the end, which is Dinah telling a joke about a talking dog."