Search - Various Artists :: I Heard It on Npr: Ladies Jazz It Up

4 1/2 An Exquisite Introduction

M. Allen Greenbaum | California | 01/03/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"
NPR put together this ravishing collection of female jazz singers, and they've doena an admirable job. It features 15 singers, and is more of a sampler than a historical document; Peggy Lee gets as much attention as Billie Holiday--they're each allotted one track each. Still, it's a superb introduction to these jazz vocalists, most of them considered the very best in the genre, with a few newcomers as well. Many of the songs share an emotional base of blues, regret, and other love-wrought musings, but there's enough variety to steer clear of easy stereotyping. Highlights include Sarah Vaughan's opening "Embraceable You" (1954; Sassy at her best, with Clifford Brown on trumpet); the understated but powerfully expressive styles of Carmen McCrae and the late Shirley Horn, and a very sensual, teasing rendition of "Teach Me Tonight," by the great Dinah Washington.



While I wish the producers had chosen a different quintessential Billie Holiday song, and the final duet of Nancy Wilson and Dee Dee Bridgewater is almost embarrassing in its forced "we-still-can-sing-can't-we-grrl" tone, the album delivers rich surprises as well. These include Diana Krall's fast-paced vocal on "I Love Being Here with You," Ms. Anita O'Day, whose Vaughan-like sound was a personal revelation, and Carla Cook doing justice to Marvin Gaye's hard-hitting, tough/beautiful "Inner City Blues (Makes Me Wanna Holler)." Inevitably, any listener will complain of omissions, but for the price, the quality of the recordings, and the variety of styles, this is one of the best single-disk collections you'll find."