Search - Jane Morgan :: Fascination: The Ultimate Collection

EXCELLENT TRIBUTE TO DIVA SONGBIRD JANE MORGAN

A. POLLOCK | PLYMOUTH, DEVON United Kingdom | 01/23/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"With a background of opera training in early childhood, work in Paris and all over Europe, initial unsuccessful recordings in London, and transition back to the USA as night-club performer, Jane Morgan's image always personified the world of sophistication in looks, manner and much of the material assigned to her.



Named after her first US hit, this welcome anthology of two dozen early singles plus album tracks (from THE DAY THE RAINS CAME/SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW, SOMETHING BORROWED,SOMETHING BLUE and selections from FASCINATION) joins a few other recent UK Jane Morgan releases. With no fewer than fifty-six tracks gathered together on two CD's, this must surely be the most comprehensive tribute to this classy singer so far available. FASCINATION, which originated in France, was the massive US hit in 1957; its source being the Gary Cooper/Audrey Hepburn film LOVE IN THE AFTERNOON which featured this well-known song as a background theme within the movie's score. However, in the UK, Jane reached the top of the Charts with THE DAY THE RAINS CAME in 1958, based on a French song written by singer/songwriter Gilbert Becaud and that Gallic version LE JOUR OU LA PLUIE VIENDRA) has also been thoughtfully included. Jane later enjoyed two further UK entries with IF ONLY I COULD LIVE MY LIFE AGAIN (1959) and the not included ROMANTICA (1960) which hopefully will make a promised Jasmine follow-up compilation.



Despite her stylish diva image and plaintive delivery of ballads, this collection reveals Jane was predominantly a singer of popular numbers with THE HEART YOU BREAK, I'V'E GOT BELLS ON MY HEART, WHY?, WHY DON'T THEY LEAVE US ALONE?, FLYIN' HIGH, LET'S GO STEADY and others showing how capable she was in letting her hair down whenever required. Jane also covered Fifties hits by others including GIVE ME YOUR WORD, AROUND THE WORLD, IT'S NOT FOR ME TO SAY, AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER, IT'S ALL IN THE GAME and CATCH A FALLING STAR; the twist being these songs were recorded by male singers, so Jane's robust versions probably racked up healthy sales thanks to those who preferred a female vocal slant on those numbers which mainly appeared as album choices. However, the Continental influence remains present and IN PAREE, LA RONDE, MY MAN, ANNA, ARRIVEDERCI ROMA, VOLARE, RIVER SEINE and BAMBINO often reflect her ability to often sing the lyrics in French.



For those who prefer something from The Great American Songbook, other standout tracks include WHERE THE BLUE OF THE NIGHT MEETS THE GOLD OF THE DAY, IT'S BEEN A LONG LONG TIME, SPEAK LOW, BEYOND THE BLUE HORIZON, WHO'S SORRY NOW?, BE MY LITTLE BUMBLE BEE and WRAP YOUR TROUBLES IN DREAMS and the minor hit TWO DIFFERENT WORLDS shared with pianist Roger Williams.



Unfortunately, recording dates are lacking but it is assumed these tracks follow a mainly chronological sequence pattern. Orchestral backing details are given together with informative background notes and excellent sound remastering so this collection is highly recommended.

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EFFORTLESS SINGER WITH A PURE DISTINCTIVE VOICE

Barry McCanna | Normandy, France | 01/20/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The first 18 tracks of this 2-CD set are compiled from singles, most from the mid-fifties, but the remaining 33 are drawn from three albums, namely "Fascination", "Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue", and "The Day The Rains Came". Three of the singles reappear in different versions on the first album, but they are such great numbers that I did not find this a problem. Jane has a pure distinctive voice, her singing appears effortless, and is a delight to listen to. Two tracks in particular are sublime, namely "Yours Is My Heart Alone" and "Speak To Me Of Love"."

Jane's music has plenty of fascination for her fans

Peter Durward Harris | Leicester England | 07/06/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"For many years, Jane Morgan's music was poorly represented on CD. Now things are changing rapidly, because ever more of Jane's music is becoming more than fifty years old, therefore no longer subject to performance copyright under current British law. There is talk of changing that law to stipulate a seventy year period instead of fifty, but meanwhile the law is being exploited to the full by some record labels who are able to supply music more than half a century old at bargain prices without compromising the quality. Fans are grateful for the opportunity to buy such great music legally, even though they may feel some guilt that the artists who recorded such wonderful music are not rewarded. Then again, if the laws are changed, the music won't be made available anyway for a further twenty years so the artists won`t benefit either way. It is in these circumstances that we are able to buy this double CD at a very tempting price.



This double CD contains tracks that were originally released on three albums, plus plenty of other tracks that were originally released as singles, whether on the A or B side. The first eighteen tracks of CD 1 and the first three tracks of CD 2 were originally released on singles. Most of these tracks went largely unheralded at the time, but Jane finally achieved a hit with Two different worlds (track 12 on CD 1) after a lot of misses. This hit featured Roger Williams on piano.



The last nine tracks of CD 1 are from Jane's original album Fascination, recorded with the Troubadors, with the title track (a song of French origin) being an American number one hit for her. (The B-side of the single apparently was a version of the same song by the Troubadors without Jane.) The other tracks include a re-recording of Two different worlds (track 26), this version being without Roger Williams.



Tracks 4-15 of CD 2 are from her album Something old something new something borrowed something blue. Tracks 16-27 of CD 2 are from her album The day the rains came, with the title track (originally a French song by Gilbert Becaud) being a British number one hit. Jane recorded the title track in its original French too, that version being the B-side of the single and also included on the album, so you'll find it here on track 27.



Track 28 of CD 2 provided Jane with a second British hit. The liner notes claim that it made the top twenty, but there were several British charts in those days and the one now regarded as definitive gives it a peak position of 27. Track 29 of CD, is from a Frank Sinatra soundtrack. Titled To love and be loved, this Sammy Cahn / Jimmy Van Heusen composition is a great way to round off the collection.



Jane Morgan, born a Christmas Day baby as Florence Currier, proved to be a fairly versatile singer, although she appears to have shown no interest in recording rock'n'roll. Jane liked to sing the great songs from the first half of the twentieth century, but she was also well capable of singing contemporary easy listening songs as shown here by her covers of Catch a falling star (Perry Como), Everybody loves a lover (Doris Day) and It's all in the game (Tommy Edwards), not forgetting those French songs. Who's sorry now (a hit for Connie Francis in the fifties) dates back to the twenties, when it was popularized by Marion Harris. I haven't heard Marion's version (it was inexplicably omitted from the only compilation of her twenties music so far released) but I've heard plenty of other versions and Jane does an excellent cover of this song.



As long as the British copyright laws remain as they are, it seems that there are likely to be further releases of Jane's music as she continued recording well into the sixties. Meanwhile, the music here contains her most commercially successful recordings and plenty of other great music."